Figure 4: Party identification | Zimbabwe | May-July 2018 May 2018 July 2018 ZANU-PF 35% 40% 1% MDC-T Chamisa/ Alliance Other party ZANU-PF 34% 36% 1% 24% MDC-T Chamisa/ Alliance Other party 29% Not close to a party/Refused/ Don't know Not close to a party/Refused/ Don't know In a high-turnout election, success depends on the ability of a political party to mobilize its support base. One indicator of this capacity is citizens’ reported attendance at party meetings or rallies. Throughout the campaign, more citizens reported attending ruling-party than opposition events. In early July, for example, twice as many people said they had attended a ZANU-PF meeting or rally (34%) than an MDC-T party or MDC Alliance gathering (18%), a 2-to-1 gap that had held steady from early May onward (Figure 5). The gap was especially wide in rural areas (by 4 to 1), notably in Mashonaland Central (6 to 1). Whether these figures reflect voluntary or coerced attendance is unknown. But in all likelihood and despite a countrywide campaign blitz by Chamisa, the opposition continued to face a persistent organizational and resource disadvantage against a state-funded ruling party.2 Figure 5: Attended party meetings or rallies | Zimbabwe | May-July 2018 60% 40% 34% 28% 20% 12% 9% 6% 6% 0% Early May 2018 ZANU-PF 2 MDC-T Chamisa Early July 2018 MDC Alliance The MDC’s deficit was especially marked in the Mashonalands, Midlands, and Masvingo. Copyright ©2018 5