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The Zimbabwean president promised a "thunderous victory" and his main opponent told him "goodbye" as they rallied their supporters one last time before Monday's elections in a country seeking to overcome decades of economic and political paralysis. The vote will be a first for the nation of southern Africa: long-time leader Robert Mugabe will not be on the ballot after resigning in November following a military takeover and pressure from the country. ZANU- PF party that supported it once. The majority of Zimbabwe's 5 million voters grew up under the 37-year-old rule .
Supporters of 75-year-old President Emmerson Mnangagwa, a former Mugabe MP and Nelson Chamisa, 40, the leader of the opposition MDC party, reunited on Saturday in Harare, the capital.
A credible vote could help Zimbabwe lose its global pariah status and revive its collapsed economy, while a controversial election would prevent the lifting of years of international sanctions.
"We opened the country to the world," Mnangagwa said Saturday, saying that hundreds of investors had entered the country since he took office with billions of dollars in commitments. Many in formerly prosperous Zimbabwe, however, still have to see effects while they remain standing or sleeping in long lines to access diminishing money.
"Allow him to finish the work that he started," said a defender of the president, Erica Chindoma, who, like many, was taken away by the ruling party to attend the stadium rally under high security.
Chamisa, a pastor and inexperienced lawyer, promised a convincing defeat for Mnangagwa, saying the president had done his part to help free Zimbabwe from white minority rule. "Your time is up," he said. "If we miss our chance on Monday, we are doomed to life."
In an interview with the Associated Press on Friday, Chamisa alleged that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission was biased in favor of Mnangagwa, which the president and the commission deny. Chamisa promised to hold peaceful demonstrations if the elections were tainted with irregularities.
The elections held under Mugabe were tainted by violence and intimidation against the opposition and alleged rigging. Mnangagwa, formerly executor of Mugabe, praises "this beautiful democratic process" and dozens of foreign observers have spread throughout the country, including teams from the United States, the European Union, the Commonwealth and the African Union.
"We are aware of the problems raised by the opposition parties, but we hope that the elections will be free and fair," US Senator Jeff Flake told reporters on Saturday. Concerns focused on the influence of the army, particularly in rural areas, and the lack of transparency in the voters lists and the ballot.
When asked if Mnangagwa was better than Mugabe, Flake replied: "
Mnangagwa himself remains under US sanctions
Everyone was not joining the party. electoral excitement of Zimbabwe. "I will not waste my time queuing to vote, these politicians are all the same, they lie," said Jackson Mundopa, a 33-year-old man who said he'd use the extended weekend to make visit to his family. Monday has been declared a national holiday.
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