Parties must submit election candidate lists by 5pm – IEC

IEC

Cape Town — Parties planning to contest the general elections for 2024 have until the Independent Electoral Commission’s (IEC) 5pm deadline on Friday 8 March to submit their candidate lists.

The IEC is currently preparing for what is anticipated to be a hotly-contested general elections on 29 May, as many experts believe opposition parties could finally unseat the African National Congress (ANC) from majority rule this year.

According to EWN, newly-registered political parties spent the last several weeks scrambling for over 47 800 signatures of support in order to contest in the elections, while those who failed will have the option of only contesting in provinces.

Parties that are unrepresented in parliament will need more than 13 800 signatures in order to be eligible for election to Parliament. The IEC said the provisional lists would be published for inspection on 26 and 27 March.

As reported by TimesLIVE, ActionSA and Rise Mzansi are among the first political parties not represented in parliament to declare their readiness to contest the elections.

ActionSA chairperson, Michael Beaumont, said his party’s recipe to success was to view the new legislation as an opportunity, rather than an obstacle.

Meanwhile, Rise Mzansi’s national chairperson, Cilna Steyn, said her party was also tying up loose ends with the IEC, bringing it closer to securing its spot on the ballot paper.

According to eNCA, the ANC must decide if it will discard members accused of corruption. The party’s NEC has been debating the guidelines over the past 2 days.

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Compiled by Matthew Petersen

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