Voting in Zim general elections ends

Harare (New Ziana) – Extended voting in Zimbabwe’s general elections closed on Thursday at 7pm countrywide, election officials said.

The country went to the polls on Wednesday to elect a new president, and parliamentary and local government representatives for the next five years.

But voting was called off in a few areas due to logistical glitches, mainly absence of ballot papers, forcing the authorities to extend polling to Thursday.

Election authorities said voting had ended in these areas at 7pm as scheduled, and vote counting had began.

In areas where voting was uninterrupted on Wednesday, election results for parliamentary and local government representatives were being declared on Thursday.

But those for president will take longer as these have to be counted and collated nationwide.

Under the country’s laws, election results must be declared a maximum five days after voting.

Over six million voters were registered to vote in Wednesday’s election, and high turnouts were reported in most areas.
New Ziana