Zimbabweans waiting with bated breath as election results trickle in

The ZEC will start announcing the much-anticipated results from Tuesday afternoon.  

"We expect from anytime around 15:00 this afternoon we will be in a position to start announcing officially the results, but we must go through a process of verification,”  ZEC commissioner Priscilla Chigumba told a media briefing.

The ZEC has five days from the day of polling to verify and announce the results from the estimated 11 000 polling stations around the country.

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Chigumba said counting had continued through the night after a strong turnout in Zimbabwe's first election since the fall of former president Robert Mugabe.

The elections chief hailed the polls up as a success even though 1.3% of the eligible voters were turned away from voting stations. 

“The reasons such as not being registered, presenting incorrect documents, some voters went to wrong stations but were later redirected to correct polling stations.”

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She also warned candidates to not announce the results unofficially as it flouts the country’s electoral laws.

Opposition MDC leader Nelson Chamisa said Tuesday he was "winning resoundingly" while incumbent President Emmerson Mnangagwa wrote on Twitter that he was receiving "extremely positive" information on the vote.