THE Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) says 700 000 new voters have been added to the voters’ roll ahead of this year’s National and Provincial elections.

IEC CEO Sy Mamabolo said this when the electoral commission briefed the media on the outcomes of the final voter registration weekend on Tuesday.

“The Electoral Commission is pleased to report that over 700 000 new voters registered during the final registration weekend, bringing the total number of registered voters on the voters’ roll to 26 727 921. Most encouragingly, of the 703 794 new registrations, over 81 per cent [574 899] are under 30 years old. This means that the youth have heeded the call to register,” he said.

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Mamabolo said over the past weekend, KwaZulu-Natal registered the highest number of new registrations with 246 847. Gauteng recorded the second highest number of new registrations with 236 287, followed by the Eastern Cape, where 130 959 registrations were recorded.

“The Electoral Commission is pleased with the overall registration level which remains high by international standards for countries with a voluntary registration system. However, the Commission remains concerned that approximately nine million eligible voters are still not registered, of which six million are under 30 years old, ”Mamabolo said.

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