IEC wraps up the voting process

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ELECTION NEWS AND VIDEOS - Western Cape electoral officer Courtney Sampson said the voting day of Election 2019 was by no way perfect, but that the IEC is addressing the challenges raised by political parties.

Party representatives were given the opportunity to address the media at the last media briefing of the day late last night.

The concerns, among which the unavailability of ballot papers at some voting stations, the inclement weather that may have impacted the voter turn-out, and the indelible ink that turned out in some instances not to be indelible will be investigated, he said.

"As we speak, at least 98% of the voting stations will have started the counting process," Sampson said.

He explained that the gap between the end of voting and the start of the counting process must be kept to the absolute minimum.

"Votes are counted inside the voting station. The tally is recorded on a results slip, that is signed by the presiding officer and the party representatives. One copy of the results slip is posted outside the voting station, the other two copies are sent to the 34 capturing sites of the IEC where it is audited.

Once audited, the final result will be announced, and the IEC has committed to making the final result known by latest Saturday. Until then, all results will be unverified figures."

Sampson said the glitches listed by the political parties will be attended to. "It is important to note that the problem with the indelible ink was not a universal problem, the question to answer is whether it will have a material impact on the outcome of the election? The electoral commission is committed to pressing charges against any voter who has voted more than once and will do so when the proof is available." Sampson reiterated that "after the election, we still are South Africans who have to live together as South Africans."

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Group Editors managed to speak with a number of the senior party members of several of the participating political parties directly after the voting stations closed.

Party leaders were unanimous in thanking their voters for their support. They commended especially the first time voters who participated in the 2019 election.

Many of the leaders said voter turn-out may have been negatively affected by the inclement weather experienced in the Mother City and surrounding areas. In areas further afield the weather had little influence on voter turn-out. They thanked the Electoral Commission for the manner in which the voting was conducted in the Western Cape.

Watch a video below.