{"id":46189,"date":"2024-04-26T06:02:14","date_gmt":"2024-04-26T04:02:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/worcesterstandard\/understand-the-third-ballot-paper-20240424-2\/"},"modified":"2024-04-26T06:02:14","modified_gmt":"2024-04-26T04:02:14","slug":"understand-the-third-ballot-paper-20240424-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/worcesterstandard\/understand-the-third-ballot-paper-20240424-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Understand the third ballot paper"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today (25 April) marks 35 days until South Africa\u2019s seventh democratic election since Apartheid came to an end in 1994.<\/p>\n

The election day is on 29 May, which will also be a public holiday to grant South Africans time to vote.<\/p>\n

Within the Drakenstein Municipality a total of 138 200 people were registered by 14 March, according to a document released by the Independent Electoral Commission<\/span> (IEC).<\/p>\n

This includes:.<\/span> 2 197 people 18 to 19 years;.<\/span> 18 029 people 20 to 29 years;.<\/span> 28 828 people 30 to 39 years;.<\/span> 30 199 people 40 to 49 years;.<\/span> 29 298 people 50 to 59 years;.<\/span> 18 539 people 60 to 69 years;.<\/span> 80 162 people 70 to 79; and .<\/span> 2 967 people 80 and above. <\/p>\n

On the three ballot papers in the Western Cape, there are:.<\/span> 29 parties contesting the Provincial Legislature;.<\/span> 34 parties and one independent contesting the Regional ballot; .<\/span> 52 parties contesting the National ballot for a seat in Parliament..<\/span> 24 parties are contesting on all three ballots.<\/p>\n

For the first time in the country\u2019s history there will also be three ballot papers at voting stations, one more than South Africans are used to crossing in previous elections.<\/p>\n

But, what does each ballot paper mean?<\/p>\n

In previous elections, there were only two ballots, a national ballot for the national assembly, or Parliament, which equips voters to choose who they want to govern on national level.<\/p>\n

Currently the African National Congress (ANC) has the majority seats, with 230 or 57,50%, while the Democratic Alliance (DA) is in second place with 84 seats or 20,77% and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) with 44 seats or 10,79%.<\/p>\n

The second ballot paper is a provincial ballot where voters choose the party to govern within the province they live in. Only parties can be chosen and no independent candidates. <\/p>\n

None of these votes will earn seats in Parliament as it is a vote on a provincial scale.<\/p>\n

\n Now, for the first time, a third ballot paper will be introduced<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

The regional ballot paper will equip voters to choose the party or independent candidate to represent their region in the national assembly.<\/p>\n

This party or independent will also contest for seats within Parliament, according to Sindile Gravel, a Pan-Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC) councillor within Mbekweni.<\/p>\n

In total, Parliament has 400 seats of which 200 is allocated towards the regional ballot vote and the other 200 to the national vote, according to Johan Liebenber, a DA ward councillor in Paarl. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe share of the Western Cape in the 200 regional seats in Parliament is 24 seats,\u201d Gravel explained, \u201cthe rest is shared by other provinces.<\/p>\n

So, in the Western Cape, parties will fight to win the majority of the 24 seats which will give them more power, regionally.<\/p>\n

This ballot paper will differ in each province, with only the candidates registered in the region displayed on the ballot paper.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe regional ballot candidate [or party] who wins the elections [in each province] will go straight to Parliament representing their region, that is [the] Western Cape,\u201d Gravel explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe importance of the regional [ballot] vote ensures that in Parliament all provinces are represented,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat regional ballot [vote] will give you [a South African] an opportunity to decide who must represent the Western Cape in Parliament.\u201d<\/p>\n

Special votes<\/p>\n

If a potential voter did not get the chance to register to vote or has to re-register, the IEC encourages South Africans to make use of the special vote option.<\/p>\n

This is according to press release by the IEC on 22 April. <\/p>\n

Special votes will take place on 27 or 28 May between 09:00 to 17:00. <\/p>\n

A voter can apply for special vote by 3 May when the process closes by:.<\/span> Registering oline at www.elections.org.za;.<\/span> or by sending an SMS to 32249 with your identification number;.<\/span> by visiting your local IEC office during office hours;.<\/span> or have the completed application form delivered there.<\/p>\n

The voter will receive an SMS informing them whether the special vote application has been approved or not.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Today (25 April) marks 35 days until South Africa\u2019s seventh democratic election since Apartheid came to an end in 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the third ballot paper | Worcester Standard & Breederivier Gazette<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/worcesterstandard\/understand-the-third-ballot-paper-20240424-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Understand the third ballot paper\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Today (25 April) marks 35 days until South Africa\u2019s seventh democratic election since Apartheid came to an end in 1994.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/worcesterstandard\/understand-the-third-ballot-paper-20240424-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Worcester Standard & Breederivier Gazette\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" 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