The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has resolved to extend the effect of a landmark Constitutional Court ruling that granted the ANC relief over its candidate list submission failures, allowing 32 other political parties in a similar position to remain in the race for the 2026 Local Government Elections.
Addressing a media briefing on Friday, IEC chairperson Mosotho Moepya said the commission had accepted the Constitutional Court’s judgment and had already begun implementing measures to give effect to the ruling ahead of the 4 November municipal elections.
“The IEC has noted and accepted the Constitutional Court ruling regarding the ANC and the submission of the candidate list to include 181 candidates,” Moepya said.
“The commission has already put in place processes to give effect to this judicial injunction.”
At the centre of the matter was the ANC’s failure to properly submit a final candidate list despite having nominated candidates and paid the required deposits.
The Constitutional Court ruled in favour of the party, paving the way for hundreds of its candidates to appear on municipal ballots.
Moepya said the commission’s constitutional responsibility was not limited to administering elections but also ensuring that all political contestants are treated equally under the law.
“The commission holds a constitutional obligation to make sure that all elections meet the high-water mark of freeness and fairness in the Republic,” he said.
“Part of the duty of the commission is even-handedness of all electoral contestants across the board.”
That principle of parity, Moepya said, compelled the commission to consider the status of dozens of smaller political parties that found themselves in the same procedural predicament as the ANC.
According to the IEC, 32 political parties intending to contest the 2026 local government elections had nominated candidates and paid the required deposits but, like the ANC, failed to submit final candidate lists within the prescribed timeframes.
Those parties collectively aim to contest elections in 121 local municipalities across the country.
“Consequent to the recognition that 32 other similarly situated political parties intend to contest alongside the ANC, and that these parties had nominated compliant candidates and paid deposits but had not submitted their final candidate lists, the commission has considered the matter carefully,” Moepya said.
“Consistent with the constitutional imperative for free and fair elections, as well as the importance of upholding the inherent principle of parity of treatment, the commission has resolved that the 32 must be deemed to have lawfully submitted their candidates.”
With less than three weeks before South Africans head to the polls, the electoral authority has signalled that its priority is not only compliance with the Constitutional Court’s ruling, but ensuring that every eligible political contestant is afforded the same opportunity to compete in what promises to be a fiercely contested local government election.
