Judgment due in ANC-IEC dispute

The Electoral Court in Bloemfontein is set to announce its verdict in the ongoing legal dispute between the African National Congress (ANC) and the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) regarding candidate submissions for the upcoming local elections. The ruling is scheduled to be delivered later on Wednesday morning, after a two and a half hour session of legal arguments that began the previous evening.

The conflict arose after the ANC alleged a technical fault in the IEC's system, which it claims prevented the party from submitting more than 180 councillor candidates before the 28 August deadline. The ANC asserts that the fault was technical and impeded its ability to upload the required number of candidates. However, the IEC has categorically denied this claim.

Advocate Daniel Burger, representing the ANC, argued during the proceedings that the party's candidates are being unjustly excluded from the local polls. He contended that at least 181 ANC candidate names were not registered and uploaded onto the IEC system by the 28 August deadline set for submission.

In contrast, the IEC, defended by Advocate Terry Motau SC, contended that the ANC was aware of the election rules and the system's functionality. They argued that the IEC operates efficiently and that there was no glitch at the time of submission.

On the other side, the Democratic Alliance (DA) was represented by Michael Bishop, who opposed the ANC's application. Bishop emphasized the importance of adhering to election deadlines for the integrity of free and fair elections. He argued that such deadlines should be uniformly applied to all political parties contesting an election.

The outcome of this case could potentially impact the electoral process and the participation of political parties in the forthcoming local polls.