The IEC re-opened voting registration for the 2021 elections.
The decision to re-open voting registration is to comply with the ruling made by the Constitutional Court of South Africa.
The Constitutional Court dismissed an application by the IEC to have the local elections happen next year.
The court ruled that elections must take place between 27 October and 1 November.
The Commission believes that the order was handed down without reasoned judgement.
However, it will proceed to comply with the decision.
The commission met over the weekend to assess the possibility of a registration weekend before voting.
The deliberation confirmed that registration weekend is necessary before voting.
The scheduled dates for registration weekend is 18 and 19 September 2021.
President Cyril Ramaphosa welcomed the decision.
“The ANC welcomes the decision to re-open candidate registration. We believe this is in line with constitutional and legislative prescripts.”
Additionally, the IEC announced that candidate nominations will re-open after registration weekend of 18 to 19 September.
The DA opposed this decision and have briefed their lawyers to explore all available legal avenues.
After the Commission held a meeting with the National Party Liaison Commission it concluded that that there are different interpretations about the Constitutional Court’s ruling.
Many parties are of the opinion that the ruling does not include the re-opening of candidate nominations.
The Commission is of the view that the re-opening of candidate nominations is reasonably necessary.
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