Mixed reaction to IEC decision to reopen candidate registration

The commission announced on Monday, September 6, that among the changes prompted by the Constitutional Court’s dismissal of their application to have elections held next year, it would reopen the candidate registration. The commission said this was to allow people who were not registered to vote and wanted the opportunity to do so.

“A person cannot register as a candidate without registering on the voter’s roll. It is only logical that if that opportunity is given to voters to register then it should be open for them to register as candidates,” Freedom Front Plus CEO Pieter de Necker said in reaction to the IEC’s decision.

De Necker said they fully supported the commission’s decision.

He said there were cases in Tshwane where people were not able to change their details on time, using the IEC online system and were not able to register as a candidate.

“Many people are asking ‘but is this not favouring the ANC’. If the ANC did comply with everything on time, would those parties that are objecting now still object or are they just objecting now because it is the mistake of the ANC,” he said.

ActionSA Tshwane mayoral candidate Abel Tau said although indirectly the commission’s decision put the ANC and others who missed the candidate submission deadline at an advantage, he said he did not believe the IEC was flouting the law.

“In terms of law, the IEC is not doing anything out of the ordinary because if you open the voter registration the election timetable has not kicked in yet. Any individual registered on the voters’ roll has the right to contest,” he said.

“The IEC is correct. Whether this favours us as leaders or not but as a matter of principle, we must be able to speak the truth. We need to give every South African who wishes to contest the opportunity to do so when they have registered to vote.”

He said the IEC’s decision was allowing first-time voters to decide whether they would like to be candidates.

“We went to court to contest the postponement because we felt it was constitutional and now we cannot demand that certain laws be broken.”

In contrast, the EFF Tshwane had different views over the commission’s decision. Chairperson Obakeng Ramabodu said they were “disappointed”.

“There was a case in KZN where the NFP (National Freedom Party) had internal issues and failed to register candidates and the Electoral Court dismissed their application for extension. We think the IEC is opening that window to favour the ANC,” he said.

“The ConCourt ruling did not order for the commission to reopen the candidate registration. This is giving the ANC an advantage.”

Ramabodu said the decision could sow distrust among the public in the commission’s independence.

DA federal council chairperson Helen Zille said the party was seeking legal advice to oppose the IEC’s decision.

“This has never been granted before when other parties have requested leeway on an IEC deadline, resulting in the NFP’s total exclusion from the 2016 local election, and the IFP’s partial exclusion from certain wards in the 2011 election,” she said.

During a media briefing on Tuesday, ANC general-secretary Jessie Duarte refuted claims that the party influenced the IEC’s decision.

She said the ANC did not lobby for the party to be given an extension.

“All of us who are contesting we have to understand that it is the voters that matter,” he said.

IEC CEO Sy Mamabolo on Monday, responding to claims that they favoured, among others, the ANC which had missed the deadline to register candidates, said their decision was carefully made and not one made recklessly.

“It was taken in the interest of free and fair elections based on solid legal advice. It was taken so that those who were on the voters’ roll could have the opportunity to contest as there was no registration weekend before.”

In August, the ANC applied for an extension, which the commission rejected.