ANC wins Johannesburg
With the 2016 local government election process coming to an end on Saturday night, the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) awarded itself a pat on the back for a job well done.
Just after the DA claimed victory in Tshwane, the ANC rose from the ashes when it conquered the City of Johannesburg on Saturday evening.
It was announced that the ANC was the official biggest political party in Johannesburg but much like the DA in Tshwane, it has to form a coalition to govern the city. No talks of any coalition has surfaced.
The ANC gained victory with 44.55%, DA came in second with 38.37% and the EFF with 11.09%.
#PresidentZuma: Thank you to the millions of voters who took part in these largely peaceful, free and fair elections.
— African National Congress (@MYANC) August 6, 2016
The 2016 local government elections have been described by many as a watershed occasion in South African politics. The process was officially declared free and fair by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) on Saturday night.
Addressing a closing function at the IEC’s national results operations centre in Pretoria West, IEC chairman Glen Mashinini said the commission was satisfied voting in all 212 councils contested, could be verified.
#Mashinini: With #LGE2016 we have sent a message to our own & to the world that SA is a thriving, vibrant and maturing democracy.
— IEC South Africa (@IECSouthAfrica) August 6, 2016
He made the statement despite the fact that at the time, results for the Johannesburg metro council had not yet been released. No reason for the delay in declaring these results was given.
He said only one objection received during the voting process had been referred to the electoral court which may lead to a re-election in some wards in Stellenbosch, Western Cape.
In the election, a total of 9 361 council seats were up for grabs with 5 080 going to the African National Congress (ANC), 1 723 to the Democratic alliance (DA), 731 to the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and 427 to Inkatha.
Mashinini said the election saw 9 301 councillors elected.
“The voters have spoken and gave a clear message of what they wanted from local government,” he said.
The IEC chief operations officer Mosotho Moepya also addressed the function, attended by Zuma, deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa, Gwede Matashe and several other dignitaries.
Moepya said Saturday night was the culmination of 18 months of preparations by the IEC, stressing that all the different observer groups, local and international, gave the election a thumbs up.
“These were the most complex and toughest elections faced by the IEC since the first democratic ballot in 1994 and I believe we have aced it,” Moepya said.
#Moepya: #LGE2016 are toughest test we have faced as an institution since dawn of democracy. I believe we have faced this test & aced it!
— IEC South Africa (@IECSouthAfrica) August 6, 2016
He said the IEC had registered 1,3 million new voters this year, bringing the total of eligible voters in the country to 26 million.
The number of spoilt ballot papers was also brought down to 1,3%. Opinion polls at voting stations showed that 96% of voters believed the process to be free and fair. A percentage of 96% was generally satisfied with the quality and service received from the IEC and 92% strongly trusted the IEC.
“The average waiting period to cast a vote was 16 minutes,” Moepya said.
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DA still in the lead, but only just
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