Appendix A 64 IRI-NDI Pre-Election Assessment Mission Statement Zimbabwe 2018 Harmonized Elections tools do not allow political parties and other stakeholders to assess or audit the overall quality of the voters roll, they give voters the opportunity to verify that their personal registration details were recorded correctly. ● ZEC Outreach and Communications – The delegation heard from many groups that the ZEC, under its new chairperson, is doing more to engage constructively with both political parties and civic organizations. The ZEC is meeting with political parties on a regular basis and, while there is no formal platform for regular interactions between the ZEC and civil society organizations, the delegation notes that the Commission has also held periodic engagements with citizen observer groups. However, significant concerns were raised by a wide array of stakeholders about the ZEC providing insufficient or conflicting information concerning the specifics related to various technical aspects of the electoral process. ● Barring Traditional Leaders from Partisan Politics – Traditional leaders have long been accused of engaging in politics to benefit the ruling party. The 2013 Constitution bars traditional leaders from engaging in partisan politics, but this has not stopped the practice. However, the High Court ruled on May 16 that all traditional leaders must refrain from engaging in partisan politics and required a public retraction from the President of the Zimbabwe Council of Chiefs, who publicly pledged his support to the ruling party. ● Reducing Opportunities for Multiple Voting – There have long been concerns about individuals voting multiple times in Zimbabwe. Under the previous ward-based voters roll system, every voters’ name appeared on the voters roll for each polling station in the ward. Additionally, each polling station in the ward was stocked with a large number of ballot papers because it was not known precisely how many voters would vote at any single polling station on election day. The new polling station-based voters roll system, mandated by the 2013 Constitution, requires voters to cast their ballots at assigned polling stations. Thus, if the new system is promptly implemented, no voter’s name should appear on the voters roll at more than one polling station and the number of ballot papers supplied to polling stations should be dramatically reduced, as the maximum number of voters per polling station is known in advance. Reducing the number of excess ballots (currently mandated by law to be no more than 10 percent) is an important measure to increase confidence in the vote. ● Enacting a Political Party Code of Conduct – In recent months, the ruling and opposition parties represented in parliament, together with ZEC, agreed to strengthen the existing code of conduct, which was included in the Electoral Amendment Act, enacted on May 28, 2018. These revisions strengthen the enforcement mechanisms of the code and extend its applicability to all actors engaged in formal or informal political activities, including traditional chiefs and security personnel. Political parties are also now required to inform their members about the code of conduct and to initiate disciplinary measures against members who fail to comply with the code. Both national and provincial multiparty liaison committees have been tasked with monitoring and resolving disputes related to the code of conduct. ● Improving the Integrity of Assisted Voting – The issue of assisted voting was a serious problem during the 2013 harmonized elections. Citizen observers reported that unusually 4