Former South African President Jacob Zuma, leader of the uMkhonto Wesizwe (MK) party, has pledged that his party will abide by the rules of the upcoming local elections and avoid trouble. On September 23, Zuma signed the Electoral Code of Conduct in Midrand, ahead of the November 4 local government elections. The signing required contesting parties to commit to the rules governing free, fair, and peaceful elections. Zuma stated that the MK party would conduct itself in a manner conducive to free and fair elections.
Despite the pledge, Zuma maintained that the MK party was robbed by the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) in the 2024 general elections. The party had challenged the 2024 elections, citing a roughly two-hour interruption in the IEC's public results dashboard. However, the Electoral Court dismissed the challenge on September 25, finding that the incident did not affect the capturing or verification of the election results. The court accepted the IEC's evidence that the underlying National and Provincial Elections Results System remained operational and uncompromised.
The Electoral Court's decision was based on the fact that the MK party had not followed the mandatory procedure under section 55 of the Electoral Act. The court also found that discrepancies in some voting-district-level reports generated from the IEC's website and dashboard resulted from a website coding error. The MK party had argued that the interruption was more than a technical glitch, alleging that it formed part of "rigging and manipulation" against it. The party has not commented on the ruling.
Zuma's comments came as the MK party prepared to contest local government elections for the first time. The party emerged as the third-largest party nationally in the 2024 elections, winning 14.58% of the vote and 58 seats in the National Assembly. Its strongest performance was in KwaZulu-Natal, where it won 44.91% of the provincial ballot, emerging as the largest party in the province's 80-seat legislature. According to a recent Ipsos poll, the party is currently positioned third nationally, with 14% support.
Zuma expressed skepticism about the upcoming local elections, citing the dispute over the 2024 results. He stated that it was not easy to be optimistic that things would turn out differently in the local elections. The MK party's concerns centered on whether the IEC had complied with the law. Zuma claimed that everything was supposed to be done according to the law, but that did not seem to be the case.
The MK party has undergone significant leadership changes since the 2024 elections. In August, Zuma announced a major organisational restructuring, appointing his son Duduzane Zuma as first deputy president. Other changes included the appointment of Reverend Mxolisi Phakathi as national chairperson and Lindiwe Mtshali as deputy secretary-general. The party defended the changes as part of efforts to strengthen organisational discipline and build an effective structure.
With 40 days remaining until election day, political parties and independent candidates are preparing for the local government elections. The MK party's pledge to abide by the electoral code of conduct and avoid trouble is seen as a positive step towards ensuring peaceful elections. However, the party's continued claims of rigging in the 2024 elections may raise concerns about its commitment to the electoral process.
Key points
- The MK party has signed the Electoral Code of Conduct, vowing to abide by the rules of the upcoming local elections and avoid trouble.
- Jacob Zuma maintains that the MK party was robbed by the Electoral Commission of South Africa in the 2024 general elections.
- The Electoral Court has dismissed the MK party's challenge to the 2024 elections, finding no evidence of rigging or manipulation.
