The Electoral Commission (IEC) has issued certificates to the 14 889 candidates, who will contest 887 seats in the forthcoming elections.

‘Nominations of candidates closed on 8 March 2024 and following processes of verification and objections, 70 political parties, and 11 independent candidates were published as final contestants in these elections,’ IEC Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Sy Mamabolo said on Tuesday in Centurion.

South Africans will once again get an opportunity to exercise their right to vote in the 2024 National and Provincial Elections (NPE2024) taking place on 29 May 2024.

‘Fifteen political parties are contesting all tiers of the elections, which means the compensatory seats in the National Assembly, the nine province-to-national elections, as well as the nine provincial legislatures. A total of 31 political parties will contest the national elections for the first time,’ Mamabolo said.

An analysis of the list of candidates reflects that 58.14% (or 8 658) are male, with female candidates
at 41. 86% or (6 234).

‘Candidates in the age category 40 – 49 are the majority at 4 361, followed by the 3 708 in the 50 – 59 age category and 3 406 in the 30 – 39 age group. Candidates who are over 60 stand at 1 924 and those between the ages of 18 and 29 are 1 493.

‘Notably, there are 15 candidates, who at 18 years, are also first-time voters. Of the 15, nine are female and six are male. These candidates are spread across eight political parties. There are 17 candidates who are aged 80 years and more. The majority (16) are male candidates, standing for four political parties, leaving only one female candidate in the age category,’ the CEO said.

On gender representation, 15 political parties have a female representation of 50% and above. Seven parties achieved a 40% and a further 14 parties have a 30% female representation on their lists.

‘Over 95% percent of logistical supplies for Election Day are already at hand. We are in the process of distributing 1 873 tonnes of material between our different war
ehousing and storage facilities across the country,’ Mamabolo said.

The IEC has reminded voters that they may only vote at a voting station where they are registered.

Voters, who will inevitably be away from their voting districts on election day, 29 May 2024, may give a Section 24A notice of their intention to vote at another identified voting station by no later than 17 May 2024.

‘Applications for special votes, for the purposes of home visits and voting station visits, opened on 15 April 2024 and will close on 3 May 2024. Home visits are intended for those voters who are unable to travel to voting stations, while special votes at voting stations are for everyone who is unable to be at the voting station on Election Day. Special voting will be conducted on the two days preceding Election Day, on 27 and 28 May 2024,’ the CEO said.

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Special votes may be accessed using one of the following modalities:

Using the secured online application form found at www.elections.org.za.

By SMSing your identity
number to 32249 (R1.00 per SMS) for voting station visit only.

By visiting your local IEC office and submitting an Appendix 1B form for a voting station special vote.

By visiting your local IEC office and submitting an Appendix 1A form for a home visit special vote. Forms can also be hand-delivered, but someone else can deliver a form on behalf of a voter.

Special votes will also be administered at South Africa’s diplomatic missions abroad to service 58 000 registered voters. These voters will be provided for at the diplomatic missions of the republic.

Source: South African Government News Agency