Another voter registration weekend planned, including for prisons and those abroad

Dates have been set for voters to register for South Africa’s 2024 national and provincial elections.

The Electoral Commission said the country’s 23,296 voting stations will open from 8am to 5pm on Saturday and Sunday February 3-4 to allow new voters to register and existing voters to inspect and if necessary update their registration details.

After the first registration weekend held on November 18-19, the voters’ roll contains 26.8-million voters with 568,374 of those registering for the first time during that period. Citizens aged 16 years and older can register to vote, provided they have a South African identity document or a valid temporary ID certificate.

South Africans living abroad can register at 120 high commissions, embassies and consulates on January 26-28. However, for the first time, South Africans abroad may now register as voters using the online self-registration portal by visiting and capturing their details and uploading a scanned image of their identity document.

Voter registration will also be conducted in correctional centres to allow inmates to exercise their right to vote. This will take place between January 30 and February 1.

The Electoral Commission’s contact centre is operational for anyone wanting to check for information. The centre, which can be reached on 0800 11 8000, operates from 8am-5pm on weekdays.

The online voter registration portal remains available until the date of proclamation of the elections for first-time voters to register and for those who are already registered to update their registration details.

In addition, registered voters can visit the Electoral Commission website to check their current registration details and voting station location. They can also SMS their ID number to 32810 to receive an SMS containing the address of their voting station (charged at R1).

TimesLIVE