Harare, 27 August 2023 (dpa/MIA) — Incumbent Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa won a second term in elections which observers described as insufficiently free and fair.

The 80-year-old incumbent secured just under 53% of the votes cast in presidential and parliamentary elections on Wednesday, while the most promising opposition candidate, Nelson Chamisa, came in with 44% of the vote, the electoral commission said late Saturday night in Harare.

This secures a second five-year term as president for Mnangagwa, who initially came to power in 2017 following a military coup.

According to preliminary results, the ruling Zanu-PF party also secured a solid majority in parliament.

Chamisa's CCC party accused the government of deliberately manipulating the election after Wednesday's partly chaotic vote.

According to regional election observers, the elections did not meet all Zimbabwe's legal requirements.

In some rural areas, there was widespread intimidation by groups close to the ruling Zanu-PF party, a report by election observers of the the Southern African Development Community (SADC) said on Friday.

The inter-governmental organization also criticized delays at polling stations after election documents were not delivered on time.

There was also criticism from the European Union's election observers.

There were serious irregularities in the electoral process in the run-up to the polls, with several human rights organizations pointing to voter intimidation, the falsification of the electoral rolls and the appointment of backers of Zanu-PF to the electoral commission.

Violence and allegations of fraud are widespread during elections in the country of about 16 million.

A former British colony, Zimbabwe has been ruled by the Zanu-PF party since it became independent in 1980.

Zimbabwe was ruled by strongman Robert Mugabe from 1987 to 2017. After Mugabe was overthrown by the military, former vice president Mnangagwa came to power.

A year later, Mnangagwa narrowly defeated Chemisa in elections overshadowed by violence and repression.

Zimbabwe's economy is in severe crisis due to runaway inflation and high unemployment.