Mugabe rounding up poll workers
posted at 8:10 am on April 8, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
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Robert Mugabe apparently can’t spin the poll data enough to convince anyone that he qualified for a run-off against the apparent winner of the presidential election, MDC challenger Morgan Tsvangirai. The Zimbabwean dictator has settled on another explanation instead. His security forces have begun arresting poll workers for undercounting the votes Mugabe intended to overcount:
Zimbabwean police have arrested at least five officials for allegedly under-counting votes cast for President Robert Mugabe in last month’s election.
Police said the election officials have been charged with fraud and criminal abuse of duty, accused of taking nearly 5,000 votes away from Mr Mugabe. …
Government ministers have said the arrested election officials were paid to falsify the election results.
They say the results posted outside polling stations showed more votes for Mr Mugabe than the forms forwarded to Harare for counting.
The poll workers make easy targets in this tug-of-war. MDC officials took pictures of every local poll result, so if the tallies received by the Zimbabwe Election Commission were suspect, they could simply check them against the pictures instead. They’re not interested in a correct count, but in manipulating allegations to delegitimize the result of the popular vote. If they have to arrest a few poll workers, then they have no problem with that, especially since it will reduce the incentive for participation in succeeding elections.
Mugabe’s Zanu-PF has now demanded a recount. That seems odd, since the election commission hasn’t released results yet. How can they know they need a recount if the votes have not yet been counted fully the first time? They’re stalling for time — time enough to figure out how to steal an election they obviously lost too badly to spin.
Ten days have passed since the election, and still the government has yet to announce any results. The MDC has taken the issue to court, which the Mugabe government’s election commission protested as outside its jurisdiction. In an ominous ruling for the ruling clique, the high court disagreed with Mugabe and heard arguments on the case, and could rule on it as early as today. A negative outcome could force Mugabe to use violence to maintain power, and could touch off a civil war.
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Is he going to eat them for dinner too like Idi Amin did?
Indy Conservative on April 8, 2008 at 8:16 AM
Yeah, because THAT’S the election fraud going on over there.
James on April 8, 2008 at 8:21 AM
Yeah, paid by Mugabe and guilty of the inability to make up enough names on the rolls to save Mugabe’s bacon. After you’ve used every name on every tombstone, where else are you supposed to get names?
michaelo on April 8, 2008 at 8:28 AM
Calling Jimmah, calling jimmah…caaaallll foooor jimmah cotta!
wepeople on April 8, 2008 at 8:34 AM
Isn’t this what Gore tried to do in 2000?
MadisonConservative on April 8, 2008 at 8:34 AM
What’s with Mugie’s Hitler moustache?
JiangxiDad on April 8, 2008 at 8:45 AM
The UN is all over this potential crisis for sure.
awake on April 8, 2008 at 8:48 AM
This is the kind of situation that the U.N. was put together for….to stop bloody despots from doing their bloody deeds. Instead the U.N. is too damn busy worrying about the evil U.S.
Mugabe needs a blue rifle pointed in his direction instead of a caravan of blue helmeted eunichs bringing body bags to carry away his victims. Makes me frakking sick.
Limerick on April 8, 2008 at 8:49 AM
Where’s Jimmy Carter?
Dr.Cwac.Cwac on April 8, 2008 at 8:56 AM
That’s only if Hizbollah loans them back enough of their vehicles.
Patrick S on April 8, 2008 at 8:57 AM
Mugabe seems to be dreaming up new and creative ways to make sure his career end with a bang - the bang of the guy in the firing squad with the live round. Or ends with a trip into retirement - at the end of a rope after a 4 foot drop.
Dead kleptocrat walking.
Wind Rider on April 8, 2008 at 8:59 AM
Is Mugsy taking his advice from Herself’s campaign or vice versa? She makes no bones about stealing Barry O’s delegates by hook or by crook.
GeneSmith on April 8, 2008 at 9:01 AM
Has former President Carter certified this election fair/free yet?
D84 on April 8, 2008 at 9:04 AM
Right out of the Rovian playbook.
shaken on April 8, 2008 at 9:08 AM
It’s funny when it happens there, but….
Think_b4_speaking on April 8, 2008 at 9:35 AM
Isn’t it funny, how, in the United States, a “roundup” is first associated with cowboys and cattle; but, when referring to the actions of Communists, it is first associated with people?
OhEssYouCowboys on April 8, 2008 at 1:08 PM
Oongawa Boondoloh … eeky eeky *click* *click*
He’ll probably throw them into a gigantic iron kettle the size of a hot tub filled with boiling water hanging over a large bonfire, then eat them while wearing a bone in his nose. Then he’ll shrink their heads and hang his favorite one from the rear view mirror as he cruises down the dirt roads blaring Kool And The Gang-Jungle Boogie on his two-way speakers from his 8-track player.
It’s still a savage world.
SilverStar830 on April 8, 2008 at 3:50 PM
I wonder how many people are thinking “Gore should have done that”.
hadsil on April 8, 2008 at 7:17 PM