Durban — This coming weekend will be voter registration time for five wards in KwaZulu-Natal to be contested in municipal by-elections on November 30, 2022.
Three of the wards became vacant after the ward councillors died while two are vacant due to the the ward councillors’ resignation.
Voting stations in the wards will be open on Saturday, October 15, 2022, and Sunday, October 16, 2022, from 8am to 5pm to allow eligible voters to register; and for current voters to check their registration details and provide/update address details where necessary.
Voters should take their identity document (ID) with them – either a green barcoded ID book, a smartcard ID, or a valid temporary ID certificate. They will also need to complete their physical home address on registration or provide sufficient particularities of their place of residence. Documented proof of address (e.g. a municipal account) is not required.
Voters can also check and update their details at their local (municipal) Electoral Commission (IEC) office on weekdays during office hours.
IEC spokesperson Kate Bapela reminded voters that it was a criminal offence to register and vote in a ward in which they were not ordinarily resident.
The following wards will be contested in KZN:
Ward 10 uMdoni Local Municipality – KZN212, with 5 033 registered voters, which “became vacant due to the councillor’s resignation”.
Ward 11 uMsinga Local Municipality – KZN244, with 4 464 registered voters, which “became vacant due to the councillor’s death”.
Ward 13 AbaQulusi Local Municipality – KZN263, with 3 602 registered voters, which “became vacant due to the councillor’s death”.
Ward 05 Mthonjaneni Local Municipality – KZN285, with 3 380 registered voters, “which became vacant due to the councillor’s resignation”.
Ward 11 Maphumulo Local Municipality – KZN294, with 3 772 registered voters, which “became vacant due to the councillor’s death”.
“Special voting will take place at voting stations as well as through home visits on November 29, 2022, between 8pm and 5pm. Voters wishing to apply to cast a special vote can apply at their local IEC office during office hours between November 14 and November 18, 2022,” Bapela said.
She said that applications for special votes could also be made online via the IEC’s website, www.elections.org.za. Once voters have applied online, they will receive an SMS notifying them of the outcome when their application has been processed.
They can also check the status of their special vote application online at www.elections.org.za.
Voters can also apply for special votes via cellphone by sending their identity number to 32249 (charged at R1) via SMS. The SMS application facility is only available for those applying to cast a special vote at their voting station and NOT for home visits.
Bapela added that for more information on these by-elections, contact your local (municipal) IEC office on weekdays during office hours. Contact details for all IEC offices are available on the IEC website at www.elections.org.za under Contact Us.
Bapela added that although South Africa no longer has Covid-19 restrictions in place, the Electoral Commission will continue to provide the following to safeguard voters and electoral staff:
- Face masks for voluntary use by electoral staff
- Hand sanitisers at voting stations and home visits
- Disposable wipes for sanitisation of pens and voting station surfaces
- Indelible ink dispensed from bottles using a single-use disposable cotton bud.
Voters are no longer required to wear masks or face coverings within a voting station, although they may continue to do so at their discretion. Similarly, voters are no longer required to sanitise their hands on entry to voting stations but may do so if they wish to.
Daily News