Electoral Commission on Constitutional Court judgment on 2016 Municipal Elections

Response to judgment of the Constitutional Court in the matter between the Electoral Commission v Aaron Pasela Mhlope and Others

The Electoral Commission welcomes the judgment of the Constitutional Court which paves the way for all 26.3 million registered voters to participate in the 2016 Municipal Elections.

We are grateful for the Constitutional Court’s expeditious ruling on this very complex legal issue. The fact that there was a majority and two minority judgments shows the complexity of this matter. Even Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng noted that this was an extraordinary case which required an extraordinary solution.

For the Electoral Commission the judgment provides final clarity and certainty that we required. From now on all voters, political parties, candidates and election officials can proceed with certainty to prepare for the 2016 Municipal Elections to proceed as planned on 3 August 2016.

The Electoral Commission appreciates the pragmatic approach taken by Constitutional Court in granting relief from meeting the requirements of Section 16(3) for the upcoming elections and allowing sufficient time to meet the requirements fully ahead of forthcoming by-elections and the next general election scheduled for 2019.

The Electoral Commission is already working on a programme of action to rectify any inaccuracies and omissions of address details within the voters’ roll. Further details of this programme will be announced in due course.

Evidently the Electoral Commission has to deal with addresses on the voters’ roll segments for Tlokwe. In this regard speedy arrangements on the process to be followed will be communicated soon after consultations with all affected stakeholders.

The Electoral Commission pledges to South Africa to leave no stone unturned in implementing the order of the Constitutional Court to address all omissions and errors in the voters’ roll.

Enquiries:
Kate Bapela
Cell: 082 600 6386
Email: spokesperson@elections.org.za

More on

Share this page

Similar categories to explore