Having formed an alliance (called the Patriotic Front) with ZAPU in 1976 to coordinate opposition to white rule, ZANU won a large majority in the first post-independence elections (1980). ZANU and ZAPU ruled Zimbabwe as a coalition until a rift developed between them in 1982; in 1987, however, the parties agreed formally to merge, adopting the name ZANU-PF on merger in 1989