A celebratory mood greeted the man who wants to be Zimbabwe’s next president as he arrived in the country’s capital to cast his vote in a historic poll.
“Chamisa‚ Chamisa” chanted a large crowd as Nelson Chamisa was ushered to the front of a long queue and entered Kuwadzana 1 Primary School in the west of Harare.
Chamisa‚ the leader of the MDC Alliance‚ is in a tight race with the ruling Zanu-PF’s Emmerson Mnangagwa‚ who took the reigns from Robert Mugabe in an ouster last year.
“I know that we are winning. We have won this election‚” Chamisa told a throng of journalists and supporters after voting.
Supporters responded: “We are already celebrating. We are ready for this new democracy.”
About 20 minutes after arriving‚ Chamisa was ushered back into his unmarked black Range Rover. As he left‚ supporters shouted “bye‚ bye” and chanted “chisa‚ chisa”.
A less pleasant experience greeted Bridget Mukura in Mutare‚ Zimbabwe’s fourth-largest city. The elderly widow was turned away after her name could not be located on the voters’ roll‚ which the opposition has frequently complained about.