{
  "id": 3929745,
  "title": "Deadline looms for political parties and independents to meet IEC's 5pm deadline",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/28/deadline-looms-for-political-parties-and-independents-to-meet-iecs",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-28T09:11:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "IOL",
    "slug": "iol",
    "url": "https://iol.co.za/news/south-africa/kwazulu-natal/2026-08-28-deadline-looms-for-political-parties-and-independents-to-meet-iecs-5pm-deadline/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "The deadline for political parties and independent candidates to submit their councillor nominations for the 2026 Local Government Elections is looming, with the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) setting a 5 pm deadline on Friday, August 28. Kate Bapela, spokesperson for the IEC, emphasized the importance of submitting all required information ahead of the deadline to ensure a smooth post-nomination process. The IEC reported that there are 609 registered political parties, of which 383 are national and 226 are provincial or municipal. In the previous election cycle, only 70 parties contested the elections, and only 15% of councillors elected were under 35 years old.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}