Mnangagwa declared Zimbabwe election winner after violent clashes

Monday's vote proceeded relatively smoothly. Then, order broke down. Al Jazeera's Hamza Mohamed reports from Harare:

• "On Wednesday, after electoral officials announced that Mnangagwa's ruling ZANU-PF party won most of the parliamentary vote, opposition supporters who claim Monday's poll was rigged took to the streets, burning tires and throwing stones before riot police and the army intervened. Witnesses say soldiers fired live bullets."
• "Chamisa claimed victory before the release of official results. Meanwhile, Mnangagwa said he was in talks with the opposition to find ways to defuse the situation."

The FT's David Pilling describes the stakes for a country in the grips of a currency crisis, and with not nearly enough jobs to support its well-educated population:

• "Down one fork, if a clear winner emerges in a poll deemed to pass muster, Zimbabwe could shed its pariah status and be reinstated into the global community. That could mean a restructuring of debt arrears and a potential flood of investment into one of Africa’s most promising economies."

• Down the other, "lies a progressive falling out with western capitals — although not necessarily with China. Zimbabwe would then hunker back down into an isolationist sulk."

History has loomed over this election — decades of one-party rule, Mnangagwa's role in enforcing Mugabe's repression, ZANU-PF's history of rigging elections. After the most open election Zimbabwe has seen in decades, it remains unclear how much has changed.