DPLG

ADMINISTRATION OF MUNICIPAL, PROVINCIAL AND NATIONAL ELECTIONS

ADMINISTERING ELECTIONS THE FIRST TIME AROUND

The 1995-96 local elections experienced many difficulties. Many of these can be put down to the fact that these were the first ever democratic municipal elections.

Many problems were experienced in semi-rural areas, which lacked infrastructure and, often, where staff were inadequately trained. These problems were compounded by the fact that many rural voters were semi-literate or illiterate.

As one Eastern Cape electoral official noted: "We need to solve the problems around using modern equipment in a mountainous, rural area. Even things like two-way radios are difficult to use in the area... Polling stations are tiny and so far apart, that to have police at every station was a very large problem. So what might work very well in an urban area can be problematic in a rural area."

But rural areas were not the only ones that experienced problems. Many urban polling stations, especially those in townships, had difficulties. Some voters were confused by the fact that they had two votes. This points to the need for improved voter education this time round.

However, the biggest problem lay with the voters' roll. Large numbers of voters arrived to vote, only to be told that they did not appear on the voters' roll for that particular ward. This caused serious tensions in some areas, where thousands of people were disenfranchised.

Many townships' polling stations ran out of ballot papers, which also caused tension to mount. In addition, there was a lack of computers and a lack of skilled people to coordinate the elections. In some areas, political parties complained about the attitude of government officials involved in the election, claiming that they were conservative and intent on frustrating the democratic process.

Back to Elections Table of Contents |