The Independent Electoral Commission was set to look into the possibility of extending voting times for stations that were affected by delays due to several reasons which led to them not to open on time.
Voting at some stations in Pretoria was delayed due to ballot papers running out, and at some stations ballot papers arrived late.
“For the voting stations that got off to a slow start or delayed in opening, the commission will make an assessment when those stations close and assess how many people are there and if there is a necessity to make any other calls that are necessary but that call will be made later,” said IEC chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo.
Mamabolo said this should not have been a problem as the IEC had ensured that there would be sufficient ballots for all residents to cast their votes during the municipal elections.
“We printed 100% of ballot papers at the voting station level so there should not be any shortages.
“There may be persons in the logistical chain who have made calls around distribution which have led to this situation and we will have to correct that,” he said.
IEC chairperson Glen Mashinini said while there were reports of disruptions at some stations the majority had a smooth start.
“The electoral commission is happy to report that over 99% of the 23 148 voting stations opened on time to kick-start voting in the 2021 municipal elections,” he said.
“Many voting stations have reported strong turnout from early in the day with many voters already waiting to vote before the 7am opening.
“We continue to urge registered voters to make their way to voting stations,” Mashinini said, as at 12:30 over 3.5 million voters had already voted.
“We are able to report this because of the use of the voter management devices.”
Reported incidents to the Commission:
– In KwaZulu-Natal, the commission reported that 20 voting stations did not open on time due to community protests. Meanwhile, a presiding officer in the eThekwini Metro was arrested after allegedly stuffing marked ballots into a box;
– In the Eastern Cape, the commission reported 19 voting stations did not open also due to community protests. These stations were set to open later on Monday;
– In Limpopo, a hailstorm delayed the opening of voting stations in Giyani. Mashinini said while there was no load shedding, disruptions in power supply disrupted voting in some parts of Limpopo and the Northern Cape; and
– In Soweto a Newzroom Afrika journalist was arrested at a voting station, the commission said events leading to the arrests were sketchy and were still being investigated.
Mashinini said they received reports of isolated cases where voters were stopped from entering voting stations because they were wearing political party clothing and regalia.
“Wearing of such clothing by voters is not prohibited. It is only prohibited for party agents. This information is made clear in a ‘Dos and Don’ts’ poster provided to each voting station.
“Any voter who is prevented from entering a voting station due to their clothing should immediately report this to the contact centre on 0800 11 8000 – or to the area manager for that voting station.”
Voting stations were expected to be open until 21:00.
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