ANC’S 181-CANDIDATE FIGHT: The Final ‘Submit’ Step Behind Its ConCourt Battle
A final online submission step sits at the centre of the ANC’s Constitutional Court fight to get 181 excluded candidates onto the ballot for the 4 November municipal elections.
The party says its administrators captured the candidates’ details on the Electoral Commission’s system before the deadline but could not complete the final submission. It argues that the information already uploaded should count.
The IEC disagrees. Its position is that entering names without completing the final submission does not satisfy the nomination requirements. The Electoral Court ruled against the ANC, prompting its approach to the country’s highest court.
The dispute carries consequences beyond the computer screen. The ANC says exclusion from proportional-representation ballots in six affected municipalities would prevent its supporters from voting for the party on those ballots.
Meanwhile, election preparations are advancing, with ballot printing adding urgency to the dispute.
The IEC maintains that the ANC’s appeal has little prospect of success. That is the commission’s position, not a Constitutional Court finding. The party is seeking an order that would reverse the exclusion.
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