Prepare to register for local elections this weekend

If you are not registered to vote by Sunday, September 19, you will not be able to vote in the November local government election.

Local elections will go ahead on November 1, says Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.

The decision followed a denial from the constitutional court to postpone the elections until next year.

A term in local elected office lasts 5 years, with an extra 90 day prescript allowed should elections not be possible. November 1, a Monday, is the latest possible date for the elections to be held under current election legislation.

“We could have chosen the original proclaimed date of October 27, but we have chosen the most outer date as the IEC (Independent Electoral Commission) has indicated that it needed as much time as possible to prepare for the election,” said Dlamini-Zuma.

The voter registration weekend will be held countrywide on September 18 and 19. To register, you will need to visit a registration station in your ward and present a valid green, bar-coded ID book, smartcard ID or valid Temporary Identity Certificate.

No other forms of identification (driver’s licence or passport) will be accepted. The ward in which you register is also where you will be required to vote on the day.

To find your closest voting station, visit maps.elections.org.za/vsfinder/ where you can input your address and it will tell you.

This year, for the first time, online voter registration is also possible at elections.org.za/pw/Voter/How-Do-I-Register.

To check your voter registration status, SMS your ID number to 32810 at a cost of R1, or check free online at elections.org.za/pw/Voter/Voter-Information.

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