The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has urged election officials to assist visually impaired voters using Universal Ballot Templates (UBTs), particularly at voting stations where the number of candidates differs from the standard template configuration.
Briefing the media at the Results Operations Centre (ROC) at Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand, IEC Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Masego Sheburi said all voting stations are equipped with single-column and double-column UBTs to accommodate different ballot paper layouts.
The templates are designed to enable visually impaired voters who are proficient in Braille to identify their choices and mark their ballots independently, supporting their right to participate in elections with greater privacy and autonomy.
Sheburi said the Commission, in consultation with Blind SA, noted a possible variation at some voting stations using double-column ballot papers with fewer than 80 candidates.
Sheburi explained that the standard double-column UBT is designed to accommodate up to 80 candidates, with 40 candidates in each column. The left column is numbered from one to 40, while the right column runs from 41 to 80.
“[This means] the number of candidates on the left is 1 - 40 and 41 - 80 on the right. Where the number of candidates is less than 80, for example, 54 candidates -- the last candidate on the left column will be 27 on the UBT. The top candidate on the right column will be 28, instead of 41, as per the current UBT template,” Sheburi explained.
The Commission has called on Presiding Officers and Deputy Presiding Officers to familiarise themselves with the ballot paper configuration at their respective voting stations and explain where the first column ends and the second begins.
“The Commission calls upon all Presiding Officers and Deputy Presiding Officers to take note of this possible variation at their voting station and assist blind voters by explaining the number at which the first column of the actual ballot paper ends,” Sheburi said.
The IEC said the guidance is intended to ensure that visually impaired voters can use the templates correctly and exercise their democratic rights without unnecessary difficulty. – SAnews.gov.za
