By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The CEO of the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC), Sy Mamabolo, said voters who are in voting queues at 9pm (19:00 GMT) will be allowed to vote even if the polls have officially closed.
In a briefing, Mamabolo said the counting process will begin after all votes have been submitted.
As he spoke, thousands were still queueing outside polling stations after nightfall, just over an hour away from planned closure.
“We are in for a higher turnout than we had in 2019, which is why it is the intention of the commission at this point to ensure that every voter who is in the queue is given an opportunity,” he said.
More than 27 million voters are registered for the most uncertain poll since the African National Congress (ANC) led the nation out of apartheid rule, but with voting delayed in many districts, some were forced to wait.
With opposition challenges from both the left and right, unemployment and crime at near record levels and a new generation growing up with no memory of the struggle against white-minority rule, the ruling party may lose its absolute majority and be forced to share power.
The IEC reported that voting was proceeding smoothly in most of the country despite long queues at busy centres but that seven per cent of stations opened late because of delays in delivering election materials.
Mamabolo also thanked the Department of Correctional Services for its assistance in the election process.
“Voting has been completed at all correctional facilities across the country. We remain grateful to the Department of Correctional Services for its ongoing assistance in ensuring that inmates exercise their democratic rights,” said Mamabolo.
The counting will take place at polling stations, and ballots will not be transported – observers will be allowed to monitor the counting process.
The IEC has seven days to complete the counting process, he explained, but said “it is not the intention of the commission to take the full seven days” to release the results.
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Video Courtesy of IECSA.