US condemns 'systemic bias' against opposition in Zimbabwe vote
The United States on Monday condemned what it called bias against the opposition in Zimbabwe's election and said it was conferring with regional partners about how to approach President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Backing findings of regional observers, the State Department pointed to "systemic bias against political opposition during the pre-election period," which it said violated assurances of Mnangagwa, who was declared the winner.
The State Department pointed to accounts by "respected civil society groups" that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission "pressured election observers to sign altered polling station result forms."
"We call on the ZEC to make the disaggregated polling station results publicly available to increase confidence in the result tabulation process," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.
"These actions belie President Mnangagwa's repeated pledges to respect rule of law, transparency and accountability," he said.
"The United States is engaging regional leaders to share our concerns, including what this means for the international community's nascent efforts to reengage the Zimbabwean government."
Repeating an earlier statement, the United States also condemned the "intimidation and disruption of lawful election observers," following arrests during the voting.
The United States has imposed targeted sanctions over what rights groups say was a descent into authoritarianism and economic decline under Zimbabwe's long-ruling first president, Robert Mugabe.
Hopes of a thaw briefly surfaced after Mnangagwa pushed Mugabe out of power in 2017, but he is also accused of clamping down on opposition and protests.
