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Special voting, which replaced postal ballots used in previous elections, is done in terms of Section 81A of the Electoral Act (Chapter 2:13).
It is meant to afford those who would be on duty on voting day the chance to cast their ballot, and is held at least 16 days before polling day.
Some polling stations closed at 7pm without receiving the ballots, with ZEC blaming late printing of ballots on the filing of cases contesting results of the Nomination Court, mainly by the MDC formations.
The commission was not clear on which candidates to put on the ballots at least by Friday.
No voting took place at 35 polling stations spread in all districts in Masvingo due to the absence of ballot papers.
Police officers and others who intended to vote spent the whole day milling around polling stations.
Those who spoke to The Herald on condition of anonymity said they were told that there were no ballot papers at the centre.
In most parts of Mashonaland Central, voting failed to take off as anticipated because the ballot papers had not been delivered.
When our news crew arrived at Glendale Council at around 11am, polling officers were waiting for the arrival of the ballots.
The situation was the same at Bindura Primary School.
At Mt Darwin High School, hordes of police officers could be seen milling around waiting for voting to begin.
They dispersed after 6pm when it emerged that voting will only be done today.
“There is nothing to wait for anymore and we will have to come back tomorrow (today) hoping that we will be able to cast the vote,” said a police officer who refused to be named.
“We will remain patient and we hope by tomorrow things will be in order and we will be able to vote.”
In Chitungwiza, voting started at 7am, but was affected by the delivery of ballots midway and was expected to end at 9pm after all those in the queue voted.
By midday, over 100 people had voted at Seke Teachers College.
Presiding officer for Chitungwiza Mr Ephraim Mutubuki said everything was going on well, although there were delays due to lack of ballot papers.
At Town House in Harare, voting started late due to the late arrival of ballot papers.
Though the final figure could not be ascertained by late last night, at least 100 voters had cast their ballots at the polling station by close of business.
At least 400 ballot papers had been delivered to the polling station in Highfield by 4pm.
In Harare South District, only one ballot paper had been delivered by 3pm in a constituency with more than 700 special voters.
Voting in Epworth and Mabvuku was also affected by the shortage of voting material.
A number of voters were still casting their votes by late last night after the late arrival of the ballots.
Presiding officer Ms Esther Gazi attributed the delay to the late delivery of ballot papers, but when the process began, voting went on smoothly with all those present managing to cast their votes.
In Mashonaland East, voting began around 4pm in most areas.
At Marondera Farmers Hall, only eight envelopes with ballots were delivered out of the 800 required.
Marondera District Special voting officer Mr O Chapwanya said those whose ballot papers had not been delivered should return today for voting.
At Goromonzi Rural District Boardroom, only 176 ballot papers had arrived by 7pm out of the expected 500, with district special voting officer Mr Mark Matipano saying the station would remain open until all those who arrived before 7pm cast their vote.
In Beitbridge District, voting went on peacefully with scores of police officers turning up at the four polling centres as early as 7am.
Some centres received ballots around 5pm, while others had to close without receiving them and would continue today after assurances that the ballots would arrive in time.
The situation was the same in Mashonaland West where voting started late and would continue today at most polling stations.
Provincial elections manager Mr Kenneth Kwaramba confirmed that voting started late in some centres around the province, while at most centres it was expected to start this morning owing to logistical challenges.
“Voting has started in some areas while in others materials are still being transported to ensure that voting starts tomorrow morning,” he said.
Hurungwe district special voting officer Mr Reuben Muguranero said they were still waiting for ballot material.
“Voting has not yet started as we are still waiting for some of the material to arrive and we expect people to start voting tomorrow (today),” he said.
In Manicaland, voting started late at most polling stations, while others failed to receive the ballots.
In Bulawayo province, voting started during midday at all the four polling stations, with the turnout overwhelming at Large City Hall, while other polling stations had fair crowds.
Voting will continue today after some delays were witnessed yesterday due to lack of ballots.
In Matabeleland South, voting started in the afternoon, with provincial elections officer Mr Jotham Nyathi blaming the delays on logistical problems.
In the Midlands, voting started around 12 noon, with scores of police officers being turned away at some polling stations because their applications were not successful.
These would have to vote during the harmonised elections on July 31.
In Matabeleland North, voting also started late due to late arrival of ballots.
Online Reporter