IEC adds 291 000 new voters as roll surpasses 29 million

The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has added about 291 000 new voters to the national voter roll, bringing the total number of first-time voters registered during its June and August registration weekends to 754 000.

Voters roll now over 29 million

Chief Electoral Officer Sy Mamabolo said that since the last general elections in 2024, 2.1 million new voters have been added to the voters’ roll. This brings the national voters’ roll to more than 29 million.

Mamabolo was providing an update after IEC’s August voter registration weekend on 1 and 2 August.

Over the past weekend, 1.7 million citizens interacted with the IEC, and of that number, 291 806, or 16%, were people registering as first-time voters. Additionally, 1 502 245, or 84%, of the people already registered, inspected and updated their registration details.

“This is in line with the message that a voter must register and vote in the voting district within the ward where they reside,” Mamabolo said.

“In local government elections, there is no provision to vote outside of the voting station of registration.”

Provincially, KwaZulu-Natal recorded the highest number of registration transactions at 427 592, followed by Gauteng with 314 856 and Eastern Cape with 313 797.

The IEC said registration stations continue to be the leading form of registration, with 1 555 318 of the total 1.7 million applications. Meanwhile, the online voter registration portal contributed to 238 733 transactions over the two days.

Young people accounted for 26% of transactions

Mamabolo said the highest usage of the online platform was recorded in Gauteng (86 492), followed by KwaZulu-Natal (41 334) and the Western Cape (33 783). He said these figures are unsurprising as these provinces have the highest concentrations of urban populations.

Young people accounted for 485 757 transactions, or 26% of the total, with 46% of new registrants under 29.

KwaZulu-Natal again leads with young people’s registration at 137 046, followed by Eastern Cape at 79 417 and Gauteng at 78 405.

Female voters accounted for 1 005 790 transactions, representing 56% of the total activity, while males account for 788 261, or 44%.

Mamabolo said the combined impact of the two registration weekends resulted in close to 4.7 million interactions with voters.

Compared to the 2021 local government elections, the two registration weekends contributed 754 332 new voters to the voter roll in preparation for the 2026 local government election.

754 000 new registrants

“The commission advises eligible voters who were unable to visit a registration station during the registration weekends to make use of the online voter registration portal before proclamation on Friday, 7 August,” Mamabolo said.

The commission says it is expanding the online registration modality, including voter registration on WhatsApp. Mamabolo said the platform uses secure identity verification measures to protect the integrity of the voters’ roll.

With the conclusion of the two voter registration weekends, the IEC will now focus on the formal election timetable, which will commence once the election date is proclaimed.

“The commission reiterates that eligible voters should not wait until the last minute to register or update their details. Experience has shown that a surge in registration activity often occurs closer to key deadlines, creating avoidable pressure on registration channels,” the commissioner said.