WASHINGTON (CN) — The United States is condemning recent presidential elections in Zimbabwe, the latest in a series of concerning foreign policy developments in Africa for the Biden administration.
The Zimbabwe Election Commission over the weekend declared that President Emmerson Mnangagwa won a second five-year term, but the State Department says the ruling party suppressed the opposition and hindered independent observers.
“We call on the ZEC to make the disaggregated polling station results publicly available to increase confidence in the result tabulation process,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement Monday.
It’s the latest headache this year for U.S. diplomats who are increasingly viewing Africa as a theater of competing influence with China and Russia. In other parts of the continent, the U.S. and Western powers hope their African allies can restore civilian rule in Niger, end the bloodshed in Sudan and support Chad’s transition away from military control.
Last week’s election in Zimbabwe, a country of about 16 million people, was the latest troubled vote in its fraught political history. It allowed Mnangagwa’s party, the Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), to retain the power it has held since the country gained full independence from the United Kingdom in 1980.
The U.S. has a long history of financial and political support for Zimbabwe and was the first to open an embassy there after independence. In fiscal 2022, the U.S. provided $398.59 million in aid to the country, with a large portion to fight HIV/AIDS. The assistance also included $12.91 million to support democracy, human rights and governance.
The modern state of Zimbabwe traces to the end of white minority rule in 1980 when Robert Mugabe became prime minister following the first elections after independence. Mugabe ruled for the next 37 years, consolidating power over time and eroding the independence of other parts of the government. His rule was marked with repression, corruption and economic decline.
Zimbabwe suffers from soaring inflation, high unemployment, poor public health resources and a weak education system. Although it is full of natural resources, such as gold and lithium, mismanagement and corruption hasn’t translated those minerals into substantial revenue to benefit the population, leaving the government in massive debt to international lenders.
In 2017, the military seized power and arrested the aging Mugabe. Mugabe resigned and Mnangagwa, one of his longtime associates, was sworn in as president.
The 80-year-old Mnangagwa was challenged in elections last week by 45-year-old Nelson Chamisa of the Citizens Coalition for Change. It was a rematch of the 2018 elections, where Mnangagwa had won his first term in a narrow victory with 51% of the vote, although that election was marred by irregularities.
On Saturday, the electoral commission declared Mnangagwa the winner with 52% of the vote, but Chamisa quickly alleged “blatant and gigantic fraud.”
“They stole your voice and vote but never your hope,” Chamisa wrote on X, the site formerly known as Twitter. “There shall be freedom and justice in Zimbabwe!”
Multiple organizations raised the alarm about the vote, highlighting arrests, violence and intimidation by the ZANU-PF against Chamisa’s party. Some foreign journalists were barred from covering the election and the electoral commission refused to issue accreditation to some election observers.
In a news conference, Mnangagwa dismissed claims that the election was unfair. He said “very few people” in Zimbabwe will feel it was impacted by violence because there was “no violence at all.”
“I’m so happy that the race was run peacefully, transparently and fairly in broad daylight,” he said. “It shows how mature our democracy is.”
The country’s laws require Chamisa to file an official petition with the constitutional court to challenge the election. Observers, however, have questioned the independence of Zimbabwe’s judicial system, noting that Mugabe and Mnangagwa expanded their power over the judiciary.
Miller said the reported intimidation and interference with electoral observers undermines democratic rule and U.S. diplomats are discussing their concerns with regional leaders.
“These actions belie President Mnangagwa’s repeated pledges to respect rule of law, transparency, and accountability,” he said. “There is much at stake for the people of Zimbabwe and the region. We urge all Zimbabweans to remain peaceful and pursue grievances through established legal channels.”
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