By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The African National Congress (ANC) has approached the Electoral Court seeking to appeal the IEC’s decision not to reopen candidate list submissions.
The ANC missed the IEC 28 August deadline to successfully finalise hundreds of nominated councillor candidates in some Eastern Cape and Free State municipalities.
The ANC claims a technical glitch on the IEC’s online nomination system stopped a final batch of candidates from being captured.
The party is seeking only the inclusion of names that were already on the Online Candidate Nomination System (OCNS) by the 17:00 deadline, with no amendments or reordering of any lists.
The IEC disputes the claim of technical failure, with CEO Sy Mamabolo stating that the Commission had received no reports of system malfunctions on the closing day and emphasized that being “captured” on the system did not equate to formal submission.
According to the IEC, 2,274 potential candidates linked to 45 political parties were captured but not submitted by the deadline, including 1,794 ward candidates and 480 proportional‑representation candidates.
The Commission has made it clear that it will not reopen the nomination system, with final candidate lists scheduled for publication on 16 September.
The ANC’s legal challenge now sets the stage for a high‑stakes battle in the Electoral Court, which will determine whether the party’s excluded candidates can still contest the elections.
In court papers, the ANC wants the Electoral Court to set aside the IEC’s decision.
It further states that the respondent, the IEC, should be directed to treat the applicant’s party lists and ward candidate nominations as having been timeously, lawfully and validly submitted in accordance with Sections 14 and 17 of the Municipal Electoral Act and to include those lists and nominations in the lists and nominations for purposes of the Local Government Elections scheduled for 4 November 2026.
The ANC’s application comes after the Electoral Court handed a judgment on Friday, 04 September 2026, that the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) cannot give an extension to a political party that missed the 28 Aug deadline for submitting list of candidates.