According to the IEC, as of Monday afternoon, 22, 000 service points had processed an estimated 201 000 special vote visits to voting stations. For eligible voters, special votes began on Monday and will conclude on Tuesday, May 28.
On the First Day of the Special Votes, IEC Reports Good Progress.
According to the Commission, at 14:00, 22 626 service points had processed an anticipated 201 794 special vote visits from voting stations.
Political party agents and observers, where available, will accompany 62 000 Commission representatives as they visit 624 593 voters over the course of two days.
“The Commission would like to remind everyone who is eligible for special voting that they will only get one visit at the specified address. The voter may vote at the location where they are registered if they are not present at the specified address, the IEC emphasized.
If You Write an Error on the Ballot Paper, What Happens?
The IEC also made it clear that the final transaction a voter makes will take precedence over the first. It is stated that this is done to safeguard election integrity and stop voters from casting duplicate ballots.
Notably, the hours of voting on Election Day are different from those of 7:00 to 21:00; individuals who applied to cast a special vote at their voting station must do so between 9:00 and 17:00.
Following voting, the ballots must be placed in an unmarked envelope, which is subsequently placed in a second envelope with the voter’s information, according to the Commission.
“All of the security and integrity procedures that apply to ordinary voting also apply to the special voting process, including inspection by party agents and observers if they are present. The voters’ roll and the list of authorized special votes will be compared in order to reconcile the special votes.
We still maintain the confidentiality of the voter’s ballot thanks to additional checks like the double envelope system.
On May 27 and 28, all of the special votes that were cast are safely preserved overnight. On May 29, they will be delivered to the polling places, where they will be opened, tabulated, and combined with the regular votes made that day before the counting process starts.
The Commission also cautioned South Africans about false information and phishing scams on social media and other digital platforms as May 29th approaches.
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