Though the Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) is still awaiting the outcomes of former deputy chief justice Dikgang Moseneke’s report into the viability of the local government elections under the lockdowns, the body says it is technically ready for the polls.
The Moseneke report, which is expected to be finalised by July 21, will guide the IEC on whether to proceed with the municipal elections, says IEC chair Glen Mashinini.
Its findings are not set in stone as it is only an advisory report, Mashinini said at the launch of the polls on Wednesday.
“Based on the constitution, the law, operational readiness for the elections and a thorough assessment of the current pandemic conditions, the commission is of the view that we are technically ready to deliver the elections,” Mashinini said.
Should the Moseneke report find that the Covid-19 pandemic makes the holding of the elections unfeasible, the elections will probably be postponed.
The decision to delay the elections does not lie with the IEC as the constitution sets a maximum term of office of five years for legislatures and municipal councils and allows 90 days from the expiry of the term to conduct elections.
The body would have to approach the Constitutional Court to decide whether the elections could be postponed.
A delay of the polls could face resistance from political parties, Mashinini said.
The ANC and the DA have previously voiced their support for the municipal polls to go ahead while smaller opposition parties such as the EFF, UDM and the IFP have raised concerns regarding the viability of the elections considering the limited ability to freely campaign amid the Covid-19 restrictions on gatherings.
Walk a tightrope
Failure to hold the elections could lead to a democratic slide and set an undesirable precedent for the future, Mashinini said.
The IEC is required to walk a tightrope to ensure that the municipal elections scheduled for October 27 are free and fair despite the pandemic.
The electoral body is also required to conduct this year’s elections with a budget reduction of R118.4m. It has set aside R1.99bn out of a total R2.31bn for the election and registration costs for the 2021/2022 financial year. Most (R500m) of the funds set aside for the elections will go towards the personnel required to conduct the elections.
Mashinini said the IEC has been engaging with the Treasury regarding the additional funding pressures resulting from the financial devastation of the pandemic.
The cuts have resulted in the IEC only scheduling one instead of two voter registration weekends (July 17-18) before the polls. The weekend will cost the IEC R200m-R250m, said Mashinini.
“We had not budgeted for Covid ... we are always looking for Peter or Paul to rob so that [we] can pay David and James,” he said.
Over the past seven months, the IEC has conducted 150 by-elections, which have served as a dress rehearsal for the upcoming local government elections.
Mashinini said that the commission has drawn from the experience of more than 100 countries that have successfully conducted elections under Covid-19 conditions.
SA has 25.75-million registered voters, with 15-million eligible voters unregistered.
The IEC will this year introduce new voter management devices (VMDs) that will replace the scanners that the electoral body has been using for 16 years.
The VMDs are expected to enhance the speed and accuracy of the voter registration and participation on election day.
The devices will allow for the instant electronic capture of voters’ registration details, including home address and registered ward, and will be able to detect voters’ citizenship, which will be checked against the national population register.
On election day, the VMDs will provide a real-time voters’ roll that will allow officials to detect if any voters have already cast their ballot, therefore avoiding instances of possible double voting.
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