The Electoral Commission (IEC) has achieved a 91% national result completion rate for the 2026 Local Government Elections as at 5 pm on Friday.
“The Electoral Commission reports that it continues to make significant progress in finalising the results for the 2026 Local Government Elections,” the Commission said.
The Commission expects to receive a total of 66 073 result slips from 23 696 voting stations.
Results have been finalised in 150 of the 213 municipalities, excluding the 44 District Councils. All municipalities in the Northern Cape have complete results.
Completion rates by province are as follows:
- Northern Cape: 100%
- Free State: 98%
- Eastern Cape: 95%
- Mpumalanga: 95%
- Western Cape: 92%
- KwaZulu-Natal: 92%
- North West: 87%
- Limpopo: 86%
- Gauteng: 75%
The Commission said the remaining results are mostly in metropolitan municipal areas, where population density means there are more voting districts. It also noted that participation by contestants has resulted in longer ballots and result slips.
“The Electoral Commission reminds all stakeholders that results remain provisional until all objections and verification processes have been concluded,” the Commission said.
It urged political parties, independent candidates, the media and the public to rely only on officially verified results published by the Commission.
The Commission also dismissed social media claims that results for Wards 4 and 23 in Emalahleni Local Municipality, Mpumalanga, were being withheld because ballots cast exceeded the number of registered voters.
“This claim is false because the official voter turnout in the cited wards is just over 50%, well below the registered voter population,” the Commission said.
It also said another claim from the same source, that a municipal official voted four times, was misleading.
According to the Commission, the voter went to the wrong voting district in her ward, was scanned there, and was then directed to her correct voting district.
“Voting more than once is not possible in the 2026 Local Government Elections because a voter may only cast a ballot in the voting district in which they are registered,” it said.
The Commission has also called on citizens to verify social media claims before sharing them, warning that spreading false information can breach the Electoral Code of Conduct and the associated Disinformation Code.
It reiterated its committed to finalising results as quickly as possible while safeguarding the accuracy, transparency and integrity of the electoral process. – SAnews.gov.za
