Cabinet dissolved ahead of poll

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe has dissolved his Cabinet in a procedural move ahead of today's election.

One of the major parties contesting Zimbabwe's elections is: ZANU-PF which has been in power since independence from Britain in 1980. It was formed in 1964 during white minority rule, and was one of two parties that led the struggle for independence. It merged with Joshua Nkomo's PF-ZAPU in 1987 after a five-year political rebellion in ZAPU's Matabaleland and Midlands strongholds.

Robert Mugabe has led ZANU-PF for over 30 years.

ZANU-PF won 62 of the 120 contested seats in the last general parliamentary elections in 2000 which were marred by violence and rejected as fraudulent by the opposition.

Mr Mugabe says ZANU-PF - which had a two-thirds majority in the last parliament elected on March 31, 2005 - must win this year's polls overwhelmingly to shame its Western critics.

Another party is the Movement for Democtratic Change (MDC) which was formed in 1999 and was propelled by a wave of popular anger against Mugabe's policies. It won nearly half of the contested seats in 2000. The labour-backed MDC draws its support mostly from urban centres and the Matabeleland provinces.

It lost electoral ground in parliamentary elections in 2005 after years of a government crackdown. It split into two factions in October 2005 following a bitter quarrel over political strategy and internal democracy.

The main MDC faction is led by Morgan Tsvangirai who says his party is confident of victory, but fears government rigging. The other MDC group is led by Arthur Mutambara.

Independent contenders are Simba Makoni who is a former finance minister and senior ruling party member standing against Mugabe for the presidency.

Jonathan Moyo, Mugabe's former propaganda chief will contest in his rural Tsholostsho constituency where he is trying to retain a seat he won against ZANU-PF in 2005.

Edgar Tekere, a former ZANU-PF secretary-general who broke from Mugabe over 20 years ago, is fighting for a seat in the Senate and is a leading Makoni supporter.

Fact box

Some key facts on Zimbabwe's elections

• Voting in presidential, parliamentary and local government elections is declared a public holiday.

• The 8,998 polling stations will open at 7 a.m. (0500 GMT) and close at 7 p.m.

• Zimbabwe has a total of 5,934,768 registered voters from a population estimated at over 13 million.

• At stake in the parliamentary election are 210 House of Assembly seats and 60 seats in the Senate, the upper house.

• Vote counting starts immediately after polls close. Parliamentary results will be announced in constituency centres and the presidential result in the capital Harare.

• The main election observer mission is from the Southern African Development Community. Monitors from Western countries critical of Mr Mugabe were barred.

Zimbabwe's decade of troubles

1998 - An economic crisis marked by high interest rates and inflation provokes riots and increasing support for the Zimbabwean Congress of Trade Unions headed by Morgan Tsvangirai.

1999 - The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is formed and Mr Tsvangirai is appointed leader.

2000 - Voters back the MDC and turn down a proposed constitutional amendment which would have given the president more power.

• Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF wins a parliamentary election amid charges of fraud and vote-rigging by the opposition.

• Thousands of independence war veterans and their allies, backed by the government, seize white-owned farms, saying the land was illegally appropriated by white settlers.

2001 - Government agrees to stop often violent land invasions in exchange for British funds to finance land reform. Mr Mugabe later rejects criticism he has ignored the deal.

2002 - Mr Mugabe wins election pitting him against Mr Tsvangirai. Observers condemn poll as flawed and unfair. Commonwealth suspends Zimbabwe.

2003 - IMF begins steps to expel Zimbabwe over dues unpaid since 2001. Commonwealth summit agrees to continue suspension, leading Mr Mugabe to pull Zimbabwe out of the organisation.

2004 - High Court acquits Mr Tsvangirai of plotting to assassinate Mr Mugabe and seize power, a ruling condemned by the government. Remaining charges are dropped in August 2005.

2005 - ZANU-PF wins parliamentary election, giving it the majority it needs to change the Constitution.

• About 700,000 people lose their homes or livelihoods in the demolition of urban slums.

2007 - Mr Tsvangirai says he was badly beaten after he attempts to attend a banned protest rally, spurring international condemnation of Mr Mugabe's government.

2008 - Mr Mugabe announces presidential and parliamentary elections for March 29, 2008.

• Ruling party member and former foreign minister Simba Makoni launches election challenge to Mugabe and is expelled from party.

• Mr Tsvangirai accuses Mugabe of abusing his position to try to rig the vote.