The Long Wait for Election Results Provokes Fear of Rigging in Zimbabwe

In the suspiciously long wait for election results in Zimbabwe, Nelson Chamisa and Emmerson Mngangagwa are both sure they are winners.

Old habits die hard. It's been difficult to believe the promises from Zanu-PF that this election will be fair, yet Zimbabweans tried their best to vote yesterday. While international attention has made it harder for rigging to exist, there are still familiar stories about people showing up to vote and being told there is an "error" in their registration, of Zanu-PF taking too long to share results, and of the threat that there won't be a peaceful transfer of power if MDC wins.

Earlier today, Tendai Biti had a press conference where he expressed concerns about election rigging. Calling Zanu-PF the "merchants of chaos and bishops of electoral fraud," he said that 21% of V11 forms that give reports on polling stations have not been released.

Adding concerns for his safety Biti said, "Chiwenga has issued an assassination order of Biti and Chamisa... We are reliably informed."

While politicians have been throwing around accusations all elections season, the history of violence against the opposition of Zanu-PF makes these claims hard to ignore. It seems that MDC has decided to be proactive and pressure ZEC to release results faster than they might intend to.

It's been a disorienting couple of days, and it's been made more confusing by the ways that each side has proclaimed a victory. Biti is already calling Chamisa "President Chamisa" and Chamisa tweeted "Winning resoundingly....We've done exceedingly well." Clearly the strategy for each side is maintaining their political bravado and insisting that they have won despite the fact that most people have been unsure about the outcome of this election.

There can only be one winner though, and according to BBC, ZEC has until Saturday to offer the results.