The MK Party has asked the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) for an independent audit of the municipal election results in eThekwini. The party made the demand even though it is leading the vote count in the metro.
The party, led by Jacob Zuma, lodged a formal objection on Friday, 6 November. It used Section 65 of the Municipal Electoral Act, according to The South African.
The MK Party claims that failures in the IEC’s results system caused differences between the figures captured electronically and the records kept at voting stations.
According to SABC News, the party says a system failure at the eThekwini Results Operations Centre disrupted how results were sent and captured. It also claims that some electronic figures do not match the signed results slips filled in at voting stations.
The party wants the IEC to stop processing the disputed results. It also wants the final declaration delayed until its concerns have been checked.
In its objection, the MK Party asked for an independent forensic examination of the affected records. It wants the IEC to keep the disputed electronic data safe while the figures are checked.
These claims have not been proven. The South African reported that the differences have not been independently shown to be evidence of vote tampering.
In provisional results on Saturday, the MK Party was ahead of the Democratic Alliance and the African National Congress in eThekwini. The final outcome had not yet been declared.
This means the objection is about how the votes were counted, not a bid to overturn a loss.
The IEC has admitted there were problems while capturing results in KwaZulu-Natal. These included connection problems and recounts. The South African reported that these problems alone do not prove the claims made by the MK Party.
The party has clashed with the IEC before. It lost a court challenge over the results of the 2024 national election. That case is separate from the new objection.
Section 65 of the Municipal Electoral Act lets interested parties challenge problems that could change an election result. Under the law, the IEC can investigate objections, ask for more information and hear submissions before it decides.
If an objection succeeds, the IEC may change the affected results within its legal powers. Some disputes can also go to the Electoral Court.
The IEC set Friday, 6 November, as the deadline for objections. The law allows late objections to be considered if there is good reason.
Final municipal election results were expected on Sunday, 8 November.
Source: this article is based on reporting by The South African. Image: The South African. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice News desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Kgomotso Maake covers news and politics for Tzaneen Voice. Kgomotso reports on government, Parliament, municipalities, courts, crime and service delivery across South Africa, with a close eye on how national decisions reach towns like Tzaneen and the wider Limpopo province. Stories are written in plain English and focus on the facts: who made the decision, what it means, and what happens next.