IEC: Over 100 voting stations closed due to protests, disruptions
The Independent Electoral Commission on Monday afternoon confirmed that more than a hundred voting stations were closed on the first day of special voting.
The commission said this was mainly due to the taxi strike in Mthatha, Eastern Cape.
Monday was the first day of special voting, which is meant to allow South Africans who can’t make it to the voting stations on Wednesday to cast their ballots.
IEC Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Masego Shiburi said the commission continued to work with stakeholders to ensure that operations run smoothly on Tuesday.
“Owing to the good preparations, the commission was able to open the majority of voting stations in the Eastern Cape, in the face of protests which had nothing to do with elections.
“Of the 435 voting stations which experienced problems in the morning, only 107 remain closed due to these external factors. The commission continues to work with stakeholders to have them open tomorrow,” he said.
He assured South Africans that the special voting process is subjected to all necessary security protocols.
"The special voting process is subject to all the security and integrity protocols of normal voting, including scrutiny by party agents and observers where present.
“Special votes will be reconciled against the voters’ roll and the list of approved special votes.
“Additional checks include the use of the double envelope system, which allows us to still preserve the secrecy of the voter’s ballot.
“All special votes collected are stored securely overnight on 27 and 28 May and will be transported to voting stations on 29 May to be opened, reconciled and added to the ordinary ballots cast on 29 May 2024 before counting begins,” says Shiburi.
He urged South Africans to watch out for misinformation and phishing scams on social media and other digital platforms.
Despite the disruptions in the Eastern Cape, Shiburi said the commission is happy with the progress made.
“As of 2 pm today, an estimated 201,794 voting station visits of special votes were processed in 22 626 service points.
“A total of 624,593 voters will be visited by 62,000 officials over the two days, from the Electoral Commission, accompanied by political party agents and observers, where they are available,” said Shiburi.
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