Pressure is mounting for President Cyril Ramaphosa to announce the widely anticipated elections date during his State of the Nation address. (Photo by Jeffrey Abrahams/Gallo Images via Getty Images)
Political parties contesting this year’s national and provincial elections have urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to use his State of the Nation address next month to declare a date for the vote.
Ramaphosa is consulting the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) on a date for the elections, which must be within 90 days of the end of the current legislature’s term in May.
A delay in announcing the dates prevents political parties from adequately planning for a successful election, said African Transformation Movement communications manager Mxolisi Makhubu.
“As a self-funded party that always tries to reach all our constituents and voter base, we need the timelines to be able to stretch our financial resources accordingly so that we remain as uncaptured as we were entering the 2019 national general elections, but most importantly so that we can successfully collect the mandate from the people and be able to deliver it in the sixth parliament,” he said.
Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema said there was no logical reason or excuse for prolonging the election date announcement.
“Ramaphosa must accept that his term, that has been defined by failure, has come to an end and give the nation an election date so it can prepare itself for a future that does not include him,” he said.
ActionSA’s chief strategist, André Francois Coetzee, said although uncertainty about the election date created some logistical problems for his party, it welcomed “every additional day to win new support from many South Africans who have given up on the political establishment”.
Democratic Alliance spokesperson Werner Horn said a prompt declaration “is essential for maintaining the momentum generated during the initial registration period”.
Last month, Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said Ramaphosa had to consult the IEC when deciding on a date for the elections, as stipulated in the Constitution.
“That election date, there is a prescribed period in terms of our laws to say it must be within which timeframe after the last elections were held. So we don’t want the president in trouble for violating his oath of office or cabinet influencing his decision to determine the election date, [which] remains the president’s sole prerogative,” she told journalists.
The IEC has said the elections will be held somewhere from May and August to elect a new National Assembly and the legislature in each province.
“These will be the seventh elections held under democracy since the end of apartheid in 1994. The new national council of provinces will be elected at the first sitting of each provincial legislature,” the electoral body said.
Last year, IEC deputy chief executive Masego Sheburi said more than 320 political parties have registered for the general elections, with the possibility for more to register before the election date was proclaimed.
Political parties and independent candidates will compete for the votes of the 26 214 764 South Africans registered to cast their ballot.
During a seminar last year, KwaZulu-Natal electoral officer Ntombifuthi Masinga said the IEC would contact international companies to help it create a double-column ballot to accommodate new entrants and independent candidates.
These newcomers include the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK) led by former ANC president Jacob Zuma, ActionSA, which previously only contested local government elections in 2021, the South African Rainbow Alliance led by former Johannesburg speaker Colleen Makhubele, as well as Songezo Zibi’s Rise Mzansi.
Many of the parties are likely to form coalitions and united fronts against the ANC, which has been in power since South Africa’s first democratic elections in 1994.
Last week, former ANC secretary general Ace Magashule said his African Congress for Transformation was joining the MK party.
The Rainbow Alliance’s Makhubele has urged the IEC to use the next registration weekend, expected to take place on 3 and 4 February, to attract young voters and reduce voter apathy.
“Having been on a campaign trail since November 2023, it is unbelievably sad to hear tertiary-level students express ignorance on how to register to vote. It’s embarrassing that most black women have no interest in voting,” she said, adding that cashiers, waiters and service industry workers who worked 15-hour shifts did not have adequate information.
“The service industry, which contributes 40% of our workforce, has been blatantly or deliberately left out. There is no provision from the IEC to assist retail workers with voter education and registration after their long working hours,” Makhubele said.