It has been five years since South Africa took to the poll. And after 30 years of democracy, we can all agree and debate on the progress and development of South Africa. With only a few hours left to register for the next election, many have taken to social media to emphasize the importance of voting and why it is crucial for everyone to be registered by midnight.
On Tuesday, the presidency’s spokesperson, Vincent Mangwenya announced the 29th of May 2024 as the national election day. So why is it important to register to vote? It has been 30 years since the first democratic elections that took place in 1994 when nearly 20 million South African’s voted, but sadly these numbers have gone down over the past few years with only 17 million people who voted in the last election.
With less than 12 hours left for IEC to close the registrations. Influencers and media personalities such as Kay Yarms and Zethu Gqola have taken to social media to urge South African to go and register to vote, highlighting voting as a democratic right and an opportunity to bring change and choose a government that can transform South Africa to a better country.
she actually tricked some of her followers and it worked - love her down for that. https://t.co/FSu5OdeQyt pic.twitter.com/EAgdr9xEex
— broke mnisi 🧚![CDATA[]]>🏽♂️🇵![CDATA[]]>🇸 🇨![CDATA[]]>🇩 (@BulelaNxokwana) February 22, 2024
@zethugqola #stitch with @Dan Corder please guys we need EVERYONE 😭 #tiktoknews #southafrica ♬ original sound - Zethu
The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has been a trusted independent electoral organisation since 1993. IEC has demonstrated fair and equal elections over the past few years. To register,
- Go to the IEC’s online portal with your ID, it will take less than 5 minutes to complete the process.
- South Africans who are abroad can also register with an option of voting securely online.
- To vote you need to be 18 years and above but if you are 16 you can register to vote for the next election in 5 years.