Voting starts in Zimbabwe elections
Zimbabweans are voting in elections that will determine the future of long-time President Robert Mugabe, who has denied allegations of vote-rigging despite concerns about the credibility of the polls.
Lines of voters snaked around a school in the capital, Harare, where polling booths opened just after the scheduled time of 7am. Many were dressed in heavy coats to ward off the winter chill and some carried flasks of hot drinks.
Voter Isaac Rufaro said he joined the queue before dawn, noting: “We have got to get this done.”
The contest pits Mr Mugabe against Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, the former opposition leader who teamed up with the president’s party in an uneasy coalition. The power-sharing deal was forged by regional leaders after Zimbabwe’s disputed and violent election in 2008.
