4. Over the last decade there have been on average no more than 1,3 million voters brave enough to consistently vote for opposition parties, regardless of the risks – which is different from concluding that this represents the full extent of their support base. It is unclear what the opposition support base would be in the context of a truly free and fair election. FIGURE 1: *united MDC in first 3, then MDC‐T in next 2. 5. In 2008, Tsvangirai received fewer votes overall in the Presidential poll than in 2002, with 1,195,562 votes. A divided opposition meant Simba Makoni of the MKD party won a crucial 8.3 % (207,470 votes) in the Presidential vote that year. 6. In 2013, Tsvangirai received 1,172,349 votes in the Presidential contest, or slightly less than the 2008 vote. He has won fewer votes in each consecutive Presidential election. 7. The MDC‐T has never won the popular vote88 at the House of Assembly level, including in the 2008 election, even though they won one constituency more than ZANU PF. The balance of power for the opposition in the 2008 election lay with the MDC (M/N), with their ten seats. MDC‐T received 1,061,000 in the 2008 House of Assembly election – fewer than for Tsvangirai running for President in the same election.                                                              88 The total vote count for each party across all constituencies at House of Assembly level.   33