What you need to know about voter registration and the upcoming elections
Once the elections are proclaimed by the President and Premiers – expected to occur in the next few weeks – the voters’ roll for this year’s elections is sealed and no further registrations are allowed.
It is all systems go for the final registration weekend on Saturday and Sunday.
Preparations are in place for the country’s 22 925 voting stations to open from 8am to 5pm over the weekend to allow new voters to register and all existing voters to update and check their address and registration details.
Each voting station will be stocked with registration forms in all official languages, maps of the ward to help locate voters’ place of residence and copies of the current voters’ roll, along with various stationery items and sign boards.
Each voting station will also be equipped with a “zip zip” ID scanner which contains the voter’s roll and helps to link each visitor to the voting station and ward.
Voting stations will be staffed by an average of three registration officials to assist voters swiftly and efficiently.
There are currently 26 million registered voters on the national common voters’ roll and the Electoral Commission hopes at least one million additional voters will be added during this weekend’s registration drive.
The Electoral Commission is especially eager for young, first-time voters to register as a new generation of participants in our 25-year-old electoral democracy. Special registration drives are also being planned for tertiary education campuses once they open in February to help boost youth registrations.
The Electoral Commission is hopeful that voters who are already registered will use the opportunity to visit their voting station to check their registration and specifically to confirm and update their address details.
Registered voters can also do this online via the “Click, Check and Confirm” facility on the Electoral Commission’s website at www.elections.org.za
All South African citizens aged 16 and older in possession of an official ID document can register as voters, although only those who are at least 18 years old on voting day may vote.
Voters should take their bar-coded ID book, smart card ID or temporary ID certificate when they go to register.
The Department of Home Affairs will open all their branches between 8am and 5pm this weekend to coincide with the registration.
This means eligible voters will be able to collect their ID documents or to obtain a temporary ID certificate in order to register. According to Home Affairs there are approximately 297 000 IDs awaiting collection at branches.
Voters need to register in the ward in which they ordinarily reside. To find out the location of their designated voting station voters can call 0800 11 8000 or use the voting station finder app on www.elections.org.za
When registering, voters need to provide their address or a description of where they live to allow the Electoral Commission to place them on the correct segment of the voters’ roll. However, documentation or proof of address is not required.
This weekend is the final opportunity for voters to register and confirm their registration details at their voting stations ahead of this year’s elections.
After this weekend registered voters can update their details online and unregistered voters can visit their local IEC office during office hours to register – but only for a short period.
Once the elections are proclaimed by the President and Premiers – expected to occur in the next few weeks – the voters’ roll for this year’s elections is sealed and no further registrations are allowed.
The Electoral Commission Contact Centre (0800 11 8000) has been activated to assist all citizens with queries regarding registration and the upcoming elections in all official languages.
It can be contacted between 8am and 5pm weekdays. It will also be open during the registration weekend.
Agents also respond to emails on info@elections.org.za and to text messages via the Electoral Commission’s Twitter handle (@IECSouthAfrica) and Facebook page (IECSouthAfrica).
Registered voters can visit the Electoral Commission website (www.elections.org.za) to check their current registration details and voting station location. They can also SMS their ID number to 32810 to receive an SMS containing the address of their voting station (charged at R1).
