Nomination courts are set to seat next week for candidates seeking to fill local government vacancies in Binga, Gweru and Victoria Falls.
The vacancies were largely created by the mass recall of councillors by the Douglas Mwonzora-led MDC-T with Binga set to have the most number of by-elections.
The MDC Alliances were recalled by Mwonzora on allegations of working with the MDC-T’s rival, the Nelson Chamisa-led Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC).
In a notice, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) chief elections officer Utoile Silaigwana said the by-elections will be held on 3 December.
He said six wards were vacant in Binga, three in Gweru, and one in Victoria Falls. Said Silaigwana:
In relation to the election of the councillors for the said wards, nomination courts shall sit on Thursday 3 November 2022 commencing from 10 AM to 4 PM at the offices of the chief executive officer for Binga Rural District Council, for the purposes of receiving nominations of candidates for election as councillors for the vacant wards 6, 8, 10, 15, 20 and 23 and the offices of the town clerk for Gweru Municipality, Gweru, for purposes of receiving nominations of candidates for election as councillors for the vacant wards 4, 5 and 18.
The offices of the town clerk for Victoria Falls Municipality, Victoria Falls, for purposes of receiving nominations for candidates for elections as councillor for the vacant ward 8 of Victoria Falls Municipality.
These are likely to be the last by-elections ahead of the 2023 general elections as ZEC recently announced that any vacancy that arises on or after 1 November will not be filled through a by-election.
Mwonzora’s MDC-T has not participated in by-elections since its candidates failed to win a single seat during the 26 March by-elections. | VicFallsLive