The people of Springs braved the chilly weather and turned up in their numbers to vote in the national and provincial elections yesterday.
Residents of all ages stood in queues at voting stations across town.
Some voting stations had a few problems at the beginning.
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At Laerskool Selectionpark, voters said the barcode scanner wasn’t working, so voters had to be captured into the system manually, which resulted in the voting process taking longer than usual.
Despite the problems, voters’ enthusiasm wasn’t dampened and all were eager to make their mark.
Lehlohonolo Nkosi, presiding officer at the Springs Civic Centre, says: “The elections at our voting station have been running smoothly as of Monday, when special votes began.
“According to our voters roll, we are expecting about 1 500 voters today and so far at 8.15am this morning we have had 107 voters.
“We have not encountered any problems. The elections have been peaceful and quiet, we have security and the voters have been nothing but friendly.”
Speaking at the voting station in Sharon Park, Rina Marais says she hoped these elections were the start of a better South Africa.
“I hope for less crime because crime is out of hand.
“I hope the country moves forward, not backwards, like now, because we’re going all the way down.
“If you look at our economic situation and where we were and where we are now, there’s a big difference.”
For Gina Msimango, the elections were an opportunity for her to speak out.
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“My vote means changing what I don’t think is right and exercising my right as a South African.
“I see the country moving in a more prosperous direction because now the nation is aware of what is right and people are willing to make a change.”
At the time of writing, the preliminary results put the ANC in the pole position in the national and provincial vote.
