o In 45 out of 210 constituencies, the votes cast were between 150% and 190% of the 2008 vote. o In another six constituencies, the votes cast were more than 200% of the 2008 figures: ie the vote more than doubled. Five of these were rural Mashonaland constituencies and the other was Harare South. All were won by ZANU PF. o This means that in 24.3% of constituencies, there were notable increases in votes cast. o In four Bulawayo constituencies, the votes cast were 150%+ of the 2008 vote. All constituencies were won comfortably by MDC‐T, and in all constituencies MDC‐T showed vote growth as well as ZANU PF, although the latter showed more of a surge (from a very low base). In several of the constituencies where ZANU PF had a very large increase in the vote, MDC‐ T also showed increases in their voting figures for 2008. MDC‐T won around one in five of the constituencies where there was a dramatic increase of the voter turn‐out compared to 2008. ZANU PF won the balance – over 80%. In Harare South, where there was a more than doubling of the voter turn‐out and a ZANU PF win, there has been over the last five years the growth of a large and very politically‐ controlled population in the peri‐urban areas of the constituency. The new arrivals have been settled on seized peri‐urban farms and are under strict ZANU PF control.103 The large increase in the vote here, and the fact that this increase was predominantly for ZANU PF, could be understood in this light. The MDC‐T vote in Harare South also increased substantially, to 170% of their last election vote, but the ZANU PF vote increased by 282%, i.e. it nearly trebled. It would be necessary to take the voting pattern at ward level into account, to establish in which part of the constituency each party gained votes, as the more established parts of Harare South are most likely to vote MDC‐T, the newly settled areas for ZANU PF. The three ZANU PF strongholds of Mashonaland West, Central and East, which were a clean sweep for them apart from one MDC‐T win in Chinoyi, showed the greatest increases in votes cast. Also worth noting is the fact that among Masvingo constituencies, there were NONE that showed a massive increase in voters, and in Manicaland, there were only 3 such constituencies, one of which was won by MDC‐T. These two provinces voted convincingly for ZANU PF, who won almost clean sweeps here. Other explanations than massive growth in apparent voting numbers have to therefore be found for the large ZANU PF vote in these constituencies, including the possible impact of previous election violence, and loss of support for MDC‐T. Land beneficiaries and support from small‐scale miners is likely to be part of the voting picture in these provinces. In other constituencies with large increases in votes                                                              103 Interview with academic researcher confirms the area is a no‐go zone for non‐ZANU PF members in ways that are similar to parts of Norton and Mbare.   42