The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) will implement the Constitutional Court’s ruling allowing 181 African National Congress (ANC) candidates to return to the candidate lists for the 4 November local government elections.
The ruling follows a legal challenge by the ANC after its candidates were excluded from six municipalities: Port St Johns, Ngquza Hill, Walter Sisulu and Sundays River Valley in the Eastern Cape, Mangaung in the Free State and uMshwathi in KwaZulu-Natal.
Justice Rammaka Mathopo set aside the IEC’s decision to reject the party’s candidate lists. The affected candidates had been excluded over problems with the submission of their nomination details.
IEC chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo said the commission would provide further details on implementing the ruling once its assessments were complete. He said preparations for the elections remained a priority.
The Afrika Mayibuye Movement has called on the IEC to extend similar relief to all political parties affected by problems with its online candidate nomination system. Its spokesperson, Sydney Baloyi, said the ruling should be applied fairly to qualifying candidates from other parties.
ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula welcomed the judgment, saying it vindicated the party and voters who wanted to support its candidates in the affected municipalities.
Mbalula also called for a review of the Democratic Alliance’s role in the government of national unity after the party intervened in the court case to oppose the ANC’s application. He said the ruling did not oblige the ANC to remain in the coalition indefinitely.
Photo: African National Congress
