- 80 blacks being elected from eight electoral provinces by black voters
- 20 reserved white seats elected from twenty constituencies by white voters, to make up the House of Assembly.
The constitutional clause on the 20 reserved seats for whites were to be reviewed after 5 years. The Senate consisted of 40 members elected by 3 electoral colleges.
- 14 senators were elected by an electoral college of the 8 black members of the House of Assembly.
- 10 Senators were elected by the white members of Parliament. The Chiefs were elected to the Senate by the Council of Chiefs in Mashonaland and Matebeleland, giving an equal number of seats for the two provinces.
- The last 6 senators were appointed by the State President acting on the recommendation of the Prime Minister.
By and large, the Zimbabwe Parliament has undergone considerable constitutional changes since independence in 1980 and, therefore can be viewed in terms of three phases:
- 1980 – 1989, bicameral legislative phase.
- 1990 – 1999, unicameral phase.
- 2006 – to date, the bicameral system introduced by constitutional amendment no. 17 of 2005.