Except for hiccups in the Western Cape, the IEC says it’s been a positive start to special voting
Sheburi said that overall, the commission is establishing a strong performance across the country on this first day of special voting.
Lindsay Dentlinger
A voter casts a ballot against the backdrop of the South African flag ahead of the 2026 local government elections, as 546 political parties and nearly 137,000 candidates contest seats across the country. (Picture credit: atlasfoto/123rf)
atlasfoto/123rf
Except for hiccups in the Western Cape, the Electoral Commission said that it’s been a positive start to the first of two days of special voting ahead of Wednesday’s municipal election day.
While dozens of mostly pensioners were left frustrated in the Cape Town metro on Monday, unable to cast votes early this morning because ballots had not arrived, the Commission said that all of the outstanding ballot papers have since been delivered to its central distribution facility.
Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Masego Sheburi said he expects the situation in the metro to improve during the course of this afternoon.
At 10 this morning, only voting stations in 10 of the 116 wards in the City of Cape Town were open for special votes.
Early voters across the city reported waiting for stations to open.
At a lunchtime update, the IEC’s national office said the final printing for Cape Town’s ballots had only been concluded yesterday.
Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Masego Sheburi said that the ballots are still being prepared for distribution to voting stations.
"What we are struggling with is the packaging of those ballots so that we ensure that they contain all the security features that must be on the ballot, that they are numbered appropriately, that they are stitched into books of 100 booklets. "
Sheburi said that overall, the commission is establishing a strong performance across the country on this first day of special voting.
It is expecting an uptick on the second day of special voting.
Those who have applied for a special vote can cast their ballot until 5 pm today.