26 February 2006
Please note: These guidelines are applicable to all voting stations -
permanent, temporary and mobile.
Voting Station boundaries
A voting station is made up of the actual âroomâ where voting is taking
place as well as the area around the âroomâ as demarcated by the Presiding
Officer for the purposes of the elections.
No political activity is allowed within the voting station or the demarcated
area except the casting of votes.
Except for the Presiding Officer, no interviews may take place within the
boundaries of a voting station.
Please note that except for the voters casting their vote at the voting
station no persons including journalists will be allowed to wear any political
apparel or paraphernalia inside the boundaries of a voting station.
Accreditation to cover Elections
Media representatives will not need formal accreditation to gain access to
voting stations but they will be required to identify themselves clearly as
members of the media by presenting a valid press card or letter from their
editor (on the organisations letterhead) in addition to an Identity Document or
Passport.
Members of the media will need accreditation for the National Operations
Centre (NOC) in Pretoria.
Contact person: Lydia Young on 082 650 8652
Please check with each Provincial Operations Centre for their requirements.
Details below:
Eastern Cape
Contact person:
Julie Stanworth
Tel: (043) 709 4200
Free State
Contact person:
Tabina Nathane
Tel: (051) 401 5000
Gauteng
Contact person:
Nthabi Tsipane
Tel: (011) 644 7400
KwaZulu-Natal
Contact person:
Thabisile Mabaso
Tel: (031) 367 9900
Limpopo
Contact person:
Thivhilaeli Nedohe
Tel: (015) 291 0600
Mpumalanga
Contact person:
Higgins Mdluli
Tel: (013) 754 0200
North West
Contact person:
Matlhodi Jebetle
Tel: (018) 387 6500
Northern Cape
Contact person:
Elkin Topkin
Tel: (053) 838 5000
Western Cape
Contact person:
Trevor Davids
Tel: (021) 944 5300
Access times to Voting Stations
Please note: Voting hours for the 2006 Municipal Elections are from 07h00 to
19h00. Members of the media will not be allowed inside voting stations once
they have closed and counting has started.
Members of the media will be given access to a voting station at the
discretion of the Presiding Officer of the particular voting station.
Presiding Officers are also under no obligation to grant the media access to
the voting station or to discuss the activities in the voting station.
Queries that fall outside of the mandate of the Presiding Officer will be
escalated to the media contact person at the National Results Operations Centre
or the particular Provincial Results Operations Centre.
Interviews/Information at Voting Stations
Section 76 of the Municipal Electoral Act, No 27 of 2000, determines that
during the hours of voting (07h00 to 19h00) no persons including the media may
print, publish or distribute any exit polls taken in the elections in
process.
Voters, party agents, candidates and accredited observers have to be
interviewed outside of the boundaries of a voting station.
Except for the Presiding Officer no interviews may be conducted with any
other voting station staff/IEC staff at a voting station.
Presiding Officers are mandated to talk on the following:
* Voter turnout at their voting station.
* Arrangements for voting at their station.
Media queries on the following topics have to be directed to either the
Media Centre at the National Results Centre in Pretoria or Provincial Centres
as appropriate:
* Content and number of objections as these are subject to an appeals
process.
* Activities outside the boundaries of the voting station.
* Policy matters.
No visuals are allowed inside the boundaries of a voting station without the
permission of the affected voter and the Presiding Officer.
No visuals are allowed where the secrecy of a voterâs ballot may be
compromised.
Once the results have been finalised at the voting station the Presiding
Officer may inform the media of the Provincial result.
Copies of the results slips will not be made available to the media.
Contact person: Lydia Young
Cell: 082 650 8652
Issued by: Independent Electoral Commission
26 February 2006
