Wednesday’s deadline for registration was extended by one day because of problems with the payment system, meaning some candidates’ fees could not be processed.
The country faces cash shortages of both the US dollar and its local currency.
Candidates from smaller parties have complained that the 20-fold hike in registration fees has reduced the number of candidates fielded.
Increased fees
Presidential candidates must stump up $20,000 (£16,000), up from $1,000 in 2018, and fees for those running for parliament were raised from $50 to $1,000.
One of the few women who wanted to run for president told the BBC her application was rejected last night when the electoral commission failed to accept a stamped document from her bank when their payment system failed.
She said it was “a system designed to keep people out”.
Runaway inflation
Zimbabwe has one of the highest rates of inflation in the world. The average civil servant earns as little as $300 a month.
The ruling Zanu-PF party has fielded candidates for all seats.
Zapu, a small opposition party, opted not to field a presidential candidate, instead using the money to pay for 20 people to run for parliamentary seats, it said in a statement.
The main opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) has complained that there have been multiple fraudulent applications on its behalf.
It says this is aimed at having several CCC candidates on the ballot in some constituencies in order to split the vote in favour of Zanu-PF.
Mnangagwa seeking re-election
President Emmerson Mnangagwa, elected president in 2018 after a military coup that deposed President Robert Mugabe the previous year, is seeking a second term in office.
The 80-year-old incumbent’s main rival is lawyer and pastor Nelson Chamisa, 45, who leads the newly formed Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC).
The presidential and parliamentary elections for Zimbabwe will be held on August 23, 2023, even as the southern African country battles a raging economic crisis.
A government gazette has also set October 2, 2023, as the date for a presidential run-off vote if required.
Apart from the presidency, the election will also decide the composition of the 300-seat parliament and close to 2,000 local council positions.
