IEC concerned over low voter turnout due to Covid-19
The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) is concerned over voter turnout during the upcoming local government elections.
South Africans will be going to the polls in October amid the raging Covid-19 pandemic.
The commission's CEO Sy Mamabolo told the National Assembly’s home affairs committee on Tuesday that the IEC has witnessed a decline in voter turnout in national and provincial elections during previous elections.
However, he stressed that its has not been the case during the previous local government elections.
"In 2011 we were able to improve voter turnout from 48% to 58%, and we retained that turnout in 2016.
"But as I sit here I don't know the impact of Covid is going to be on turnout.
"If there was no Covid, as a commission we would have pushed very hard through our programmes, voter education and communication programmes to push that into the 60% arena," said Mamabolo.
He told MPs that the commission is not sure if Covid-19 would discourage voters from going to the polls.
He explained that the IEC would educate voters on the safety measures put in place at the voting stations to combat the spread of the virus.
