Polling by independent organizations indicate Mugabe came in second behind opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai in last weekend's presidential and parliamentary elections. Members of the president's camp reportedly raised trial balloons, looking for a deal that would allow him to step down gracefully and avoid prosecution for any crimes he committed in office, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

However, a Tsvangirai spokesman said, "I don't know anything about such meetings."

The government's electoral commission hadn't released official results from the presidential vote, although parliamentary partial results showed opposition forces were slightly ahead of the ruling party.

A diplomat and an analyst said the negotiations about a possible transfer of power away from Mugabe began after he apparently concluded that a runoff election would be demeaning, The New York Times reported.

"The chiefs of staff are talking to Morgan and are trying to put into place transitional structures," said John Makumbe, a political analyst.

The diplomat, speaking anonymously because of the sensitivity of the discussions, said Mugabe's advisers entered the negotiations after receiving feelers from Tsvangirai.