Robert Mugabe Gets Backing of Zanu-PF for Presidential Run-Off against Morgan Tsvangirai

Despite speculation that Robert Mugabe would forgo a run-off and quietly hand over Zimbabwe’s presidential reigns to Morgan Tsvangirai it now appears that the man who has held office for 28 years won’t go so easily.

Mugabe has received the backing of his country’s ruling party Zanu-PF and that may be enough for the 84-year-old to face a second poll. While the results of Saturday’s presidential vote have yet to be made public it is widely believed that Tsvangirai garnered a higher total.

It is that total that is now at the center of the debate.  Tsvangirai believes he received more than 50 percent of the vote while other polls have placed that number at 49 percent. Mugabe is said to have gained 42 percent.

That difference is not great enough for Tsvangirai to take the presidency outright and could lead to a run-off, something many Zimbabwe citizens are suspicious of as Mugabe has been accused of rigging election results in the past.

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