Political party leaders have mapped their plans to visit as many voting stations in as many regions as possible, as the Independent Electorate Commission’s (IEC) first voter registration weekend starts on Saturday.
Parties have their eyes and loud-hailers firmly focused on encouraging the youth to register to vote in the upcoming national general elections scheduled to take place next year.
The IEC said it aims to register at least one million eligible voters this weekend. The highly anticipated 2024 provincial and national elections (NPE 2024) will take place under the theme “Your Democracy, Own It”.
Around 23,296 registration stations across South Africa have been equipped to welcome voters to register between 8am and 5pm this weekend, November 18 and 19.
The recently released Census 2022 results indicated that South Africa’s population has grown to 62 million people, with an estimated 39.7 million voting-age population.
The voters’ roll currently stands at 26.2 million, representing 66% of the estimated voting-age population.
The African National Congress (ANC) plans to have its national leadership canvass across the country on both days.
ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to be in Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni on Saturday and in Tshwane and Hammanskraal on Sunday.
Deputy President Paul Mashatile will be stationed in Limpopo on both days.
The party’s national chairperson, Gwede Mantashe, will be in KwaZulu-Natal; secretary-general Fikile Mbalula will be in the Eastern Cape; while the rest of the leadership will cover the other provinces.
Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema will be in Gauteng, traversing the province from Soweto to Alexandra to Ekurhuleni to Tshwane.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) national and provincial leaders will also be visiting various voting districts across the country.
The DA’s campaign manager, Greg Krumbock, the chairperson of the Federal Council, Helen Zille, and DA spokespersons Solly Malatsi and Werner Horn are also expected to host a media briefing on Saturday morning to address the party’s state of readiness for the voter registration weekend.
Build One South Africa (Bosa) leader, Mmusi Maimane, will be in Gauteng and the Western Cape spearheading the party’s voter registration drive.
Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) President Velenkosini Hlabisa will be leading the IFP’s voter registration drive in KwaZulu-Natal this coming weekend. Hlabisa will be in eThekwini on Saturday and in Umzumbe on Sunday.
IOL