52 IRI/NDI Zimbabwe International Election Observation Mission Final Report Role of International Community The 2018 Zimbabwe elections were observed by several international organizations. In addition to the joint IRI/NDI ZIEOM effort, others included the European Union (EU), the African Union (AU), SADC (as well as several teams representing different organs of SADC and organizations within SADC), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), and the Commonwealth. In addition, the Carter Center deployed technical teams throughout the process. The EU arrived in Zimbabwe soon after President Mnangagwa’s proclamation of an election date. The EU deployed more than 140 observers throughout the country. The EU’s chief observer was Elmar Brok, a long-standing member of the European Parliament from Germany. The other observer teams deployed their long-term observers in July. The delegation leaders included former Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn for the AU; Angolan Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Antonio Tete for SADC; and former Ghana President John Mahama for the Commonwealth. In addition, from July 19 to 21, Kofi Annan led a pre-election visit of the Elders that included Mary Robinson and Lakhdar Brahimi. According to ZEC figures, it accredited 1,007 international observers and 11,019 domestic observers. On the day preceding the election, the principal sub-regional organization, SADC, convened a meeting for the leaders of the principal international observer groups to share impressions of the pre-election period. A similar gathering was organized by the AU for the day following the elections to compare notes regarding Election Day observations. Most groups agreed to schedule postelection press conferences on August 1, except the Commonwealth, which issued a statement on August 2. By mid-August, most of the international observers had departed Zimbabwe, with the exception of the ZIEOM long-term observers and the core teams of ZIEOM, EU, and AU. The legal analysts from ZIEOM, EU, and AU all observed the August 22 Constitutional Court hearing and were present when the Court issued its decision on August 24.