"In Mugabe's traditional strongholds, they are doing very badly. There is no way Mugabe can claim victory unless it is through fraud. He has lost this election," Biti said.
Last night, a chirpy state television bulletin announced that Zimbabwe Election Commission officials were "verifying" results before broadcasting interviews on how smooth and peaceful the elections had been.
It was equally quiet at the ZEC "command center," where results are normally posted. One independent observer who visited the center said there were just a few people sitting around reading the paper.
Noel Kututwa, chairman of the Zimbabwe Election Support Network, an independent monitoring group, said the delay in results created tension and speculation, and he called on the ZEC to release the results.
"The issue of the delay of the announcement of the results raises tension, which is why we are saying the ZEC should release these results as quickly as possible," he said. "Clearly the delay is fueling speculation that something might be going on."
Zimbabwe had barred observers traveling from the United States and the European Union and several international news media organizations. The State Department said Friday that the United States would field almost a dozen poll watchers for the elections and would report afterward on the electoral process and the results.
Robyn Dixon writes for the Los Angeles Times. The Associated Press contributed to this article.
