5,9 million registered to vote in Zimbabwe

5,9 million registered to vote in Zimbabwe

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THE number of people registered to vote in Zimbabwe's elections on March 29 has increased by more than 300 000 to nearly six million, the head of the state electoral commission has revealed.

The total figure of registered voters is now 5 934 768, up from 5 612 464 in December, according to George Chiweshe, the chairperson of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC).

The names were added between December and February 14, the cut-off date for new registrations for the national polls, said Chiweshe in comments carried by Wednesday's Herald daily.

The elections will see President Robert Mugabe facing two strong contenders: main opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai and former finance minister Simba Makoni.

In the last presidential election in 2002, Mugabe beat Tsvangirai by less than 500 000 votes, a result the opposition refused to accept.

About 8 000 police officers had registered to vote by postal ballot, said Chiweshe.

The number was believed to include police officers deployed to polling stations that were not in their home constituencies, as well as officers serving abroad.

Chiweshe also said 8 998 polling stations had been identified. It was not immediately clear if more were to be added. Last month, state media said the electoral commission was to set up 11 000 polling stations.
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