SA VOTING IN MAY BY JESSIE TAYLOR
Expect changes at elections due to new legislation
S
outh Africans will go to the polls for the country's seventh democratic election on Wednesday 29 May. However, the voting process will be slightly different this year due to recent changes to the legislation governing our elections. In April last year, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the Electoral Amendment Bill into law. This piece of legislation expands electoral participation and widens the pool of leadership choices for national and provincial elections. According to the Independent Electoral Commission, more than 27.79 million voters - the highest since the dawn of democracy in
South Africa, are eligible to cast their votes in the 2024 National and Provincial Elections. Chief Electoral Officer Sy Mamabolo said: "Since the voters’ roll was compiled for the first time ahead of the 1999 National and Provincial Elections, it has shown steady growth of over 35% and contains the highest number of registered voters, recording an increase of 9.6 million voters since the 1999 general elections." Gauteng remains the biggest voting block, followed by the provinces of KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, respectively.
42 | Public Sector Leaders | April 2024
Of the eligible voters, 15 million are female, representing over 55%.