Registration weekends are important because they allow people to visit their voting stations. Photo: Facebook/Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC)
The countdown to the second and final voter registration weekend ahead of South Africa’s 2026 local government elections has begun.
The Electoral Commission (IEC) is urging eligible citizens to ensure they are registered and ready to cast their vote on Wednesday, 4 November.
South Africans who missed the first registration weekend in June will have one final opportunity to register, update their voter registration details, or confirm they are correctly registered during the nationwide registration drive on Saturday, 1 and Sunday, 2 August.
The IEC is once again taking voter registration closer to communities by opening designated voting stations across the country to assist eligible voters ahead of the elections.
During the first registration weekend, the commission recruited more than 70,000 staff members to oversee its upcoming election registration weekend.
“The August registration weekend will be the final opportunity for voters to physically visit a voting station and register,” said IEC general manager for civic and democracy education and research Moagisi Letlhaku.
“But online registration remains available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, free of charge and data-free on all networks.
“Registration weekends are important because they allow people to visit their voting stations, familiarise themselves with where they will vote and engage directly with IEC officials if they have any questions about the electoral process.”
“There are many more South Africans that we want to see on the voters roll, and we are continuing to call on eligible citizens to register before the final registration weekend on 1 and 2 August.”
The upcoming registration drive follows a successful first voter registration weekend held on Saturday, 20 and Sunday, 21 June, during which nearly three million South Africans responded to the Commission’s call to prepare for the local government elections.
Approximately 2.9 million voter registration-related transactions were recorded during the June registration weekend. Of these, 477,174 were first-time registrations, while about 2.4 million registered voters inspected or updated their registration details, said the commission.
Young people between the ages of 16 and 29 accounted for 785,078 registration activities, while women made up the majority of participants, accounting for approximately 1.6 million transactions compared to 1.2 million by men.
“I want to encourage every eligible South African who has not yet registered, or who needs to update their registration details, to make use of the final voter registration weekend on 1 and 2 August.”
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