Categories: Stories

MDC’s parallel vote counting failed in 2008

The announcement by Movement for Democratic Change secretary-general Tendai Biti that the party will announce its own election results has once again raised questions about whether it has improved its vote-counting machinery.

The system flopped in 2008 according to cables released by the United States embassy.

Two parallel voting systems were simultaneously being carried out in the 2008 elections, one by the Zimbabwe Election Supervisory Network which was funded by the United States government through the National Democratic Institute, and the other by the MDC and funded by Econet boss, Strive Masiyiwa.

Although Biti announced that party leader Morgan Tsvangirai had won the presidential elections, the parallel count by the ZESN said he had won only 49 percent of the vote.

The MDC’s American advisor Kathi Walters said the party’s parallel count had failed because they had only captured 80 percent of the votes.

(48 VIEWS)

Charles Rukuni

The Insider is a political and business bulletin about Zimbabwe, edited by Charles Rukuni. Founded in 1990, it was a printed 12-page subscription only newsletter until 2003 when Zimbabwe's hyper-inflation made it impossible to continue printing.

Recent Posts

Zimbabwe among the top countries with the widest gap between the rich and poor

Zimbabwe is among the top 30 countries in the world with the widest gap between…

November 14, 2024

Can the ZiG sustain its rally against the US dollar?

Zimbabwe’s battered currency, the Zimbabwe Gold, which was under attack until the central bank devalued…

November 10, 2024

Will Mnangagwa go against the trend in the region?

Plans by the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front to push President Emmerson Mnangagwa to…

October 22, 2024

The Zimbabwe government and not saboteurs sabotaging ZiG

The Zimbabwe government’s insatiable demand for money to satisfy its own needs, which has exceeded…

October 20, 2024

The Zimbabwe Gold will regain its value if the government does this…

Economist Eddie Cross says the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) will regain its value if the government…

October 16, 2024

Is Harare the least democratic province in Zimbabwe?

Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare, which is a metropolitan province, is the least democratic province in the…

October 11, 2024