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News release

Young Zimbabweans far less likely than their elders to be registered and to intend to vote in 2023

14 Sep 2022 Zimbabwe
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News release
Key findings
  •  Nearly seven in 10 Zimbabwean adults (68%) say they are registered to vote in the 2023 elections (Figure 1).
  •  The middle-aged (83% of those aged 36-55 years) are more likely to be registered than either their younger counterparts (54% of those aged 18-35 years) or the older generation (72% of those aged 56 years or more) (Figure 2).
  •  Looking at those who are not registered to vote (Figure 3), more than half of Masvingo (58%) and Bulawayo/Mat North/Mat South (53%) residents fall into this category. Rural residents (32%) are more likely to report not having registered to vote than their urban counterparts (25%), as are the youth (41%) compared to the middle-aged (17%) and the elderly (27%).
  •  Two-thirds (67%) of citizens say they will “definitely” vote in the 2023 harmonised elections. In addition, 19% say they will “probably” vote, and 7% they may or may not do so, while the rest say they will “probably” (2%) or “definitely” (5%) not vote (Figure 4).
  •  Overwhelming majorities of citizens who say they are registered (97%) or intend to register (86%) say they will probably/definitely vote (Figure 6).

Large majorities of Zimbabweans say they are registered to vote and intend to cast their ballots in the 2023 elections, a new Afrobarometer survey shows.

But young citizens are considerably less likely than their elders to report being registered, and only slightly more than half of 18- to 35-year-olds say they will probably or definitely vote.

As reported by citizens, both registration rates and intention to vote also vary considerably by province.

Among respondents who are registered to vote, a resounding majority say they will probably or definitely cast their votes in the upcoming elections.