SACP welcomes Constitutional Court decision affirming right to vote

20 September 2021

The South African Communist Party (SACP) welcomes the judgment of the Constitutional Court that the Independent Electoral Commission’s (IEC’s) decision to re-open the candidate submission process for the 2021 municipal election is NOT unconstitutional, unlawful, and invalid. The right to vote is inextricably intertwined with the right to stand for election.

Also, after the Constitutional Court set aside the initial local government election proclamation, the candidate lists submitted to the IEC based upon the invalidated proclamation could not be final and binding while the apex court ruled that the IEC must re-open the voter registration process to allow those who did not have a reasonable time to register.    

The right to vote and stand for election are integral in ensuring a free and fair election, in line with the Freedom Charter’s directive that every person shall have the right to vote and to stand as a candidate for all bodies which make laws as well as the right to take part in the administration of the country.

The SACP calls upon the Alliance to unite and close ranks against the detractors and groupings who are now attacking the Constitutional Court and the IEC as their strategy to weaken our democratic dispensation.

The imperative to put people before profits, to put people at the centre of development, must be the backbone of this election process. 

Issued by Alex Mohubetswane Mashilo, SACP Central Committee Member: Media & Communications, 20 September 2021