1 zimbabwe election support network [zesn] - Nehanda Radio

CHAPTER ONE
HISTORICAL AND POLITICAL BACKGROUND OF ELECTIONS
Historical Background
Elections do not occur in social vacuum. They take place within specific historical and political
contexts. Unfolding historical and political developments directly and indirectly influence the
electoral processes of the country. In fact, they constitute the macro environmental contexts
within which elections are conducted.
Political and historical contexts define the play field, determine the rules and the play of the
game as well as the policy issues that inform and underpin election campaigns. Electoral
processes and practices at a given time, mirror political scenarios aground. Where the political
climate is tense, agitated, and polarized, election campaigns have generally been marred with
violence. Understanding of the politics and history of the country is therefore critical in
unraveling the political behavior of election contenders.
Also instructive to note is that the liberation struggle was a protracted search for the right to
majority enfranchisement, a basic citizen democratic right that is exercised through periodic
elections. Periodic elections not only allow citizen participation in political processes but also
allow the country’s citizens to define their socio-economic destiny by choosing a government of
their choice. A freely exercised vote therefore expresses the political will of the people in a
given country. The 1980 Election undertaken within the framework of the 1979 Lancaster
House Constitution provided Zimbabwe’s eight million black majority citizens with the first
experience to exercise their political right of enfranchisement. The 1980 Election therefore
symbolizes a departure from exclusionary politics.
Through that first election, monitored and observed by the regional and global community,
black Zimbabweans expressed their collective will through the ballot box, a political will that led
to the first government of Zimbabwe, a Government of National Unity [GNU] comprising ZANU
[with 57 parliamentary seats], ZAPU [with 20 parliamentary seats], UANC [with 3 parliamentary
seats] with 20 parliamentary seats [constitutionally reserved for Whites until 1987 in the
Lancaster Constitution. In this case, a GNU that is based on the vote [will of the people] is not a
novelty in Zimbabwe.
Since 1980, elections have been a very visible feature of post independence politics in
Zimbabwe, hence the 1985 Election, the 1990 Election, the 1995 Election, the 2002 Election
and the 2005 Elections. These elections have to be situated within first and second decade
political developments such as the civil conflict in Matebeleland and Midlands [1982-87], the
Unity Accord between ZANU and ZAPU in 1987, the emergence of ZUM and its vigorous
opposition to the idea of one party legislation in the 1990s, the emergence of vibrant opposition
party in 2000, rejection of the Draft Constitution, the shift to Fast Track Land Reform Program,
human rights issues and manner of implementation of the reform program estranged relations
with the West, adoption of SADC Principles and Guidelines on Democratic Elections in 2004,
among others.
The interplay of historical and political factors during this period also had a direct bearing on
voting trends. While the first three elections had sustained voter interest, the period 1985 to
1995 was generally characterized by voter apathy. From an estimated turnout of 94 % in 1980,
the proportion declined steadily over the years to 84% in 1985 and 47% in 1990. The
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