11. ANALYSIS OF REGISTRATION DATA The Biometric Voter Registration Blitz and the Mop-Up Exercise registered 5,325,631 eligible voters. This figure represented 73, 5% of the estimated voting population in the country, surpassing the 70% target that ZEC had set. As can be seen from the BVR dashboard below, the overall trend for voter registration from previous elections is downwards, although Seven (7) out of the ten (10) provinces registered increases in the number of registrants. Bulawayo, Mashonaland Central and Manicaland all recorded a downward trend from the 2013 figures. The overall downward trend is possibly explained by the possibilities as argued in the past, that previous voters’ rolls were grossly inflated with deceased people and duplications as notable concerns. The expectation is that the BVR exercise produced roll will have fewer duplications and dead people on account of its newness. The figure below shows the BVR process outputs in comparative historical perspective. It indicates a reduction in numbers of registrants from all post-2000 elections except the 2000 House of Assembly and 2005 Senate Elections. Bearing in mind that previous voters rolls had various integrity, coverage and accuracy questions on account of factors highlighted in the context section. Figure 6 Zimbabwe's Registration Figures Over Time 46