IEC audits election results system ahead of local polls
· Citizen
The Electoral Commission (IEC) of South Africa has completed an independent external audit of its Election Results System as part of its preparations for the 2026 Local Government Elections.
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According to the commission, the system captures and collates election results and allocates seats to contesting parties and candidates.
Transparency
The IEC said that, as part of its transparency measures, it has made the system available to political parties and contestants to assess its integrity, functionality, security and reliability.
“Four political parties have nominated information and communications technology (ICT) experts to participate in the review process.
“These are the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP), the African National Congress (ANC), the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the uMkhonto we Sizwe Party (MKP),” the IEC said.
Review
The review exercise began on 5 October 2026 and is scheduled to conclude on 12 October 2026.
“Political parties and other interested stakeholders had until 30 September 2026 to indicate their intention to participate and submit the names of their nominated experts.”
The IEC said the audit and review process forms part of its measures to ensure transparency, credibility and confidence in the electoral process ahead of the Local Government Elections.
The commission reiterated its commitment to administering the 2026 Local Government Elections in a manner that is credible, transparent, inclusive and compliant with the law.
Accusations
In June 2026, former president Jacob Zuma’s MK party hit back at accusations that its bid to overturn the 2024 election results was an act of a “grumpy loser”.
The party insisted that a two‑hour blackout of the IEC’s live results dashboard may have compromised the integrity of the polls.
Application
The MK party initially lodged an urgent application with the Electoral Court after the elections, seeking to set aside the results and to direct President Cyril Ramaphosa to proclaim a new election date within 90 days.
It later withdrew the case without giving reasons, then took the matter to the Constitutional Court (ConCourt).
Last month, the Electoral Court dismissed the MK party’s application to set aside the results of the 2024 national and provincial elections.
Results
The MK party performed well in the 2024 polls, becoming the third-largest party in the country after the DA and the ANC.
It received 15% of the national vote, replacing the EFF in third place. It contested the polls almost a year after its launch in December 2023, on a ticket of radical economic transformation.