By Bridget Johnson, your guide to Journalism

It’s been five days since the presidential election in Zimbabwe: Anybody seen a vote count yet? Anybody? Well, the parliamentary count was released yesterday — Mugabe’s party lost control of the lower house, the Senate count is dragging on (as the counters are likely, er, scared), and the backlash against the opposition party is just beginning:

“Intruders ransacked offices of the main opposition party and police detained foreign journalists Thursday in an ominous sign that President Robert Mugabe might turn to intimidation and violence in trying to stave off an electoral threat to his 28-year rule.


Earlier, Mugabe apparently launched his campaign for an expected run-off presidential ballot even before the official results of Saturday’s election were announced, with state media portraying the opposition as divided and controlled by former colonial ruler Britain.


Five days after the vote, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission still had not released results on the presidential election despite increasing international pressure, including from former U.N. chief Kofi Annan, who recently mediated an end to Kenya’s postelection violence.


The opposition Movement for Democratic Change already asserted its leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, won the presidency outright, but said it was prepared to compete in any run-off.”

Tsvangirai reportedly made an under-the-counter gesture toward the military chiefs, who have vowed to back Mugabe, and was going to meet with several of them until they back out for fears they were under surveillance. That’s a pretty safe bet, unfortunately. And it’s bound to only get worse:

“Diplomats in Harare and at the United Nations said Mugabe was planning to declare a 90-day delay to a presidential run-off to give security forces time to clamp down. The law requires a run-off be held within 21 days of an election, but Mugabe could change that with a presidential decree, a Western diplomat in Harare said.


A diplomat at the U.N. Security Council, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said if the run-off was put off the council might have to take up the issue.”

MORE TURMOIL: Pulitzer Prize winning NYT correspondent among the journalists seized

(Photo by Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)