Figure 13: Careful about what one says | by political party affiliation | Zimbabwe | July 2018 100% 16% 29% 28% 23% 71% 73% 76% ZANU-PF Other parties Not close to a party/Refused/Don't know 80% 60% 40% 84% 20% 0% MDC-T Chamisa/ Alliance Often/Always Rarely/Never Fear of election-driven political violence remains widespread even if improvements are visible at the margins. In early May, a slim majority (51%) said they personally feared becoming a victim of electoral intimidation or violence; by early July, a large minority (43%) expressed this concern, an 8-percentage-point drop10 (Figure 14). This positive shift in the public mood occurred even in the face of a bomb blast at a ZANU-PF election rally at White City Stadium in Bulawayo on June 23. It is reinforced by a growing majority (68%) who thought the current government was performing well at “preventing electoral violence” (up 5 points from 63% in May). This judgment was perhaps enhanced by President Mnangagwa’s restrained public response to the Bulawayo bombing. Figure 14: Fear of electoral intimidation or violence | Zimbabwe | May-July 2018 80% 60% 51% 48% 40% 56% 43% 20% 0% Early May 2018 Somewhat/A lot Early July 2018 A little bit/Not at all 10 But fear of campaign violence is location-specific, being particularly high in Mashonaland East (71% in July 2018). Copyright ©2018 12