The Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) has reopened the process to register candidates for the upcoming local government elections, throwing the ANC a lifeline in dozens of municipalities where it had missed a previous cut-off date for registrations and drawing sharp criticism from opposition parties.
The IEC, which rejected the ANC’s call to reopen the candidate nomination submission process last week, reconsidered its decision after legal advice it got after the Constitutional Court judgment on Friday, which said elections could not be postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The decision is a big victory for the ANC as it had stood to lose control of, or votes in, 93 of the country’s 278 municipalities including Tshwane, Mangaung and Mbombela.
The party missed an earlier deadline to submit its nominations. This posed a significant threat to the ANC’s hold on power, which has registered a sharp decline in electoral support in recent elections.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, in his closing remarks on Monday following the ANC national executive committee meeting at the weekend, said the party welcomed the decision to reopen candidate registration. He said the ANC “agrees” with the IEC that there is an “inextricable link” between voter registration and the right of people to stand for public office.
He said there is palpable anger towards and disillusionment with the ANC and the party needed “not to underestimate this general feeling among the country’s citizenry”.
The decision drew angry reactions from opposition parties. DA federal chair Helen Zille accused the IEC of bending over backwards for the ANC.
“Exactly as predicted, the IEC has used the five-day delay granted by the ConCourt to reproclaim the election, reissue the timetable and reopen the time for candidate registration so that the ANC can fix its disastrous failure,” Zille said on her Twitter page before the official announcement.
The IFP, which had been in line to gain votes in KwaZulu-Natal had the IEC not provided the extension, also charged the independent body of political bias. Spokesperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa said the reopening of the candidate registration process “clearly shows that they are operating with political bias. The interpretation of the judgment by the IEC is not legal, but political.”
In response, the IEC said it is concerned that some political parties are undermining the integrity of the institution to mobilise their supporters.
“The IEC is worried [about] public statements that impugn its independence as well as the independence of its officials in circumstances [where there are] no formal objections,” CEO Sy Mamabolo said.
Even though Mamabolo declined to confirm it, Business Day understands that some IEC commissioners want the electoral body to lay a formal complaint against the DA with the electoral court for misleading public statements which “selectively distort information that they are privy to”.
Insiders who attended the IEC’s meeting with the party liaison committee (PLC) all confirmed that the majority supported the IEC’s decision, and the DA and EFF were in the minority. Business Day reliably understands that 10 out of 14 political parties represented at the meeting with the IEC felt the candidate list processes should be reopened.
The PLC is a platform for registered political parties and the IEC to consult and co-operate on electoral matters aimed at delivering free and fair elections.
At a media briefing on Monday, Mamabolo said the decision to reopen the candidate registration process was not taken “recklessly”.
“It was taken based on solid legal advice based on the Constitutional Court judgment. The commission could not have contemplated the behaviour of the virus or that it would be with us for so long or there would be different variants,” he said.
IEC chair Glen Mashinini also said the majority of political parties supported the decision to reopen the candidate registration process, but did not give details. “There were parties that did not agree with the interpretation [that we should reopen the registration process]. That’s the divergence of views that emerged in the discussions. But we also need to understand when we talk about PLC and consultation, it doesn’t mean that the commission is seeking permission,” he said.
The IEC unsuccessfully approached the apex court seeking an order to declare that holding elections beyond the five-year expiry term of municipal councils was constitutional.
But the court ordered that the elections be held between October 27 and November 1, as mandated by the constitution. The court, which has yet to provide reasons for its ruling, did not specify whether candidate registration should also be extended, leaving the IEC’s decision open to legal challenge.
Co-operative governance & traditional affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma is expected to proclaim a new election date on September 20.
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