The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) in KwaZulu-Natal has called on political parties, independent candidates and their supporters to exercise patience and allow the counting and results capturing processes to proceed in accordance with established electoral procedures.
Provincial Electoral Officer Ntombifuthi Masinga made the appeal on Thursday as the Commission continued processing results from the 2026 Local Government Elections.
Masinga also urged political parties and other role players refrain from disseminating unverified information or disinformation regarding election results.
“Such conduct has the potential to create unnecessary tensions, undermine public confidence, incite violence and result in damage to property or injury,” Masinga said.
Giving an update on the counting process, Masinga said this was progressing smoothly at all voting stations, with no interruptions reported.
As at 12pm on Thursday, the Commission had received 4 872 (35%) of the expected 14 245 results slips, while 4 452 (31.3%) had been scanned into the results system. Of the results captured, 3 432 (24.1%) had already undergone independent auditing.
Masinga said the Commission had received complete sets of results from two of the province’s smaller municipalities — Endumeni and Emadlangeni.
“These results have been captured; however, they will not be immediately available because they still must go through the auditing process, which is currently underway. The Commission is impressed with the level of capturing in our offices,” Masinga said.
In eThekwini, the province’s largest municipality, Area Managers are continuing to transport results from voting stations to the Provincial Results Operations Centre.
Commission officials are also working to resolve exceptions flagged by the results system.
Masinga explained that the system uses predefined percentage thresholds, with results falling outside these parameters automatically flagged for verification.
“Each flagged result is subjected to further scrutiny to confirm its accuracy and compliance with the prescribed parameters. Where the exception is confirmed to be valid, it is subsequently cleared on the system, allowing the results processing process to proceed,” she said.
Preliminary voter turnout
Preliminary figures indicate that KwaZulu-Natal recorded 2 937 250 voters, representing a turnout of 49%.
The province recorded the second-highest number of voters nationally, behind Gauteng, which recorded approximately three million voters. The figures are preliminary, as additional data is still being uploaded.
Reported incidents
Masinga also reported power outages affecting eight voting stations in the KwaMakhutha area in Ward 94, as well as Lugobe High School in Ward 96.
In Ward 72, at Shallcross Primary School, an elderly woman passed away while being transported to hospital.
The Commission extended its condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased. – SAnews.gov.za
Source: Original report at SAnews.gov.za.
