A tale of two leaders
A tale of two presidents
Just like in 2018, the just ended election proved that Nelson Chamisa is more popular than his party while Zanu PF is more accepted by the electorate than President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
The election was a mirror of the 2018 plebiscite where Zanu PF polled more than Mnangagwa but this time around the margin was bigger. In the previous election, Mnangagwa’s tally of 2 456 010, was 21 698 votes less than the ZANU-PF MPs’ votes of 2 477 708. This year, the gap widened substantially to 144,680 votes. Zanu PF beat Mnangagwa in all provinces except for Masvingo where he edged Zanu PF by a slender margin of 3 981.
In the 23 August election, Mnangagwa lost to Zanu PF in Hwange Central, Gwanda South, Hunyani, Epworth South, Goromonzi West, Harare South, Zvishavane-Ngezi, Mbare, Mutasa South, Gokwe Central and Redcliff.
Chamisa gained more votes than the Citizens Coalition for Change just as he had polled more than the MDC Alliance which he led in 2018. Chamisa in 2023, is more popular than his MPs in all provinces. He polled 116 038 more votes than his party. In Harare, Chamisa won 21,370 more votes than CCC.
Joseph Dube, a political scientist says there is more to these variances.
“What is very clear in both 2018 and 2023 elections is that Zanu PF Members of Parliament command more support than their president. It could be the effect of “bhora musango” where MPs campaign for themselves leaving Mnangagwa to his own devices. The president knows he is not popular even in Zanu PF hence he has created parallel structures to counter that in the form of the ‘4Eds’ but that has not helped much. Some Zanu PF supporters voted for a Chamisa presidency.
The president’s lack of charisma is another factor. He does not come across as a people person, his speeches are not inspiring. In contrast, Nelson Chamisa seamlessly and effortlessly works crowds. That is why even Zanu PF supporters vote for him. He is everything that Mnangagwa is not.
Most CCC MPs could never win without Chamisa. They hide their incompetency behind him. Chamisa has perhaps dangerously made the party about him. It looks like a one-man party. He has clipped the wings of those with potential to challenge him such as Biti. I think the betrayal by his erstwhile comrades, the likes of Mwonzora and Komichi has made him less trusting therefore causing him to adopt soloistic tendencies. It is bad news for the party. I do not think there is anyone who holds Chamisa accountable in the CCC thus Zanu PF is a stronger institution than CCC,” said Dube.
A Zanu PF youth who spoke on condition of anonymity said Forever Associates of Zimbabwe (FAZ) was formed after realising that Mnangagwa lacked support in the party.
“FAZ was borne out of a realisation that some MPs were being selfish by only campaigning for themselves and disadvantaging His Excellency because he is not on the ground in communities. We are in the process of correcting that,” she said.
Tellingly, just before the election, Owen ‘Mudha’ Ncube, warned candidates at a rally that the party would not accept a situation where Mnangagwa gets less votes than an MP.
Chamisa is by some distance the most prominent figure in the CCC. The party’s campaigns are centred on him while the opposite may be true for president Mnangagwa.
