South Africa extends candidate-list relief to 32 more parties
South Africa’s electoral commission extended candidate-list relief to 32 parties after a Constitutional Court ruling allowed excluded ANC candidates to stand. The parties had nominated candidates and paid deposits but had not filed their final lists. The commission must complete admissions and print remaining ballots before local elections scheduled for 4 November.
Geopolitics··Morning
Thirty-two parties receive the same treatment as ANC
South Africa’s Electoral Commission, known as the IEC, extended candidate-list relief to 32 other political parties after a Constitutional Court ruling on excluded African National Congress candidates. Commission chairperson Mosotho Moepya said parties in the same position should receive equal treatment. The parties concerned had nominated candidates and paid election deposits, but had not submitted their final candidate lists.[1], [2]
Thursday’s judgment allowed 181 ANC candidates omitted from final lists to contest the elections. They included 51 ward candidates and 130 proportional-representation candidates across six municipalities. The commission had waited for the court’s decision before printing those municipalities’ ballots. Moepya said no printing costs had therefore been incurred for those ballots before the judgment was handed down.[1], [2]
Parties must confirm they still intend to stand
The commission will contact the 32 parties to ask whether they still intend to contest the elections. Those confirming their participation will be allowed to complete nomination requirements. They can add or substitute candidate names where necessary before certificates are issued. Including the ANC, the process covers 33 parties. Moepya described excluding similarly situated parties as inconsistent with parity of treatment.[2]
A separate group of 13 parties had not met the necessary requirements, the commission said. Problems included election deposits and candidates’ registration on the voters’ roll in the municipalities where they wanted to stand. The commission distinguished them from the parties covered by the extension. The new arrangements therefore concern parties that had already taken nomination and deposit steps but failed to complete their final lists.[1], [2]
Ballot printing continues before the November vote
The IEC said 27 million ballots had already been printed and 6.6 million remained to be printed, against a total requirement it described as approximately 33 million. Candidate-list changes and additional submissions have affected preparations. Moepya said logistics had been significantly disrupted, but the commission did not currently expect the election date of 4 November to change. Special voting is scheduled for 2 and 3 November, leaving the commission limited time to complete the remaining work.[2]
