IEC confirms 70 parties will contest SA 2024 elections

IEC confirms 70 parties will contest SA 2024 elections

We are now under the one month to go mark until the 2024 South African general elections.

The Electoral Commission (IEC) is in the final stretch of preparations for what will be the seventh democratic elections since the very first took place 30 years ago in 1994.

This year’s elections will be the most contested in the history of the country, according to widespread opinion.

South Africans will go to the polls on Wednesday, 29 May to the elect the leadership for the seventh administration out of the 70 political parties and 11 independent candidates that were published by the IEC as final contestants in these elections.

That day has been declared a public holiday.

Record number of registered voters

In total, there are over 14 903 candidates vying for 887 seats in the National and Provincial Legislatures.

To access the full list of 70 political parties and the list of candidates, click HERE

As a reminder, according to the official IEC website, 27 723 820 voters in South Africa are eligible to mark their ‘X’ in this year’s national and provincial elections.

That number represents the highest total since the dawn of democracy in the country.

The ANC received its greatest number of votes in the 1994 elections (12 237 655) and its highest overall percentage in 2004 (69.69%).

However, that percentage dropped to a record low in the most recent 2019 elections with 57.5%.

Talk suggests that figure could fall below the 50% mark in 2024.

Breakdown

Meanwhile, it’s important to note that only those who are on the voters roll certified by the IEC (as of 12 March) will be able to vote on 29 May.

“It is impossible to vote in that election if you have not applied for registration before [the close of the voters roll],” confirmed the IEC.

In 2024, the provincial breakdown of the registered voters indicates that Gauteng (23.6%) remains the biggest voting block, followed by KwaZulu-Natal (20.7%) and the Eastern Cape (12.41%).

There has been a marked increase in the rate of representation by persons in the age group 18-39 years.

This age band accounts for 42% – or 11.7 million – voters on the voters’ roll.

Interestingly, the trend of there being more females on the voters’ roll continues.

Of the 27.79 million voters, 15 million are females. This represents over 55%.

Since the voters’ roll was compiled for the first time ahead of the 1999 national and provincial elections, it (the voters’ roll) 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.

The table below illustrates the rate of growth on the voters’ roll for successive elections:

Bookmark The South African website’s Elections 2024 hub for the latest news you need to know.

DO YOU KNOW WHO YOU’LL BE VOTING FOR IN THE 2024 GENERAL ELECTIONS?

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