For the majority of South Africans, since the first post apartheid elections held in 1994, the one held on the 29 May 2024 is deemed as important. A number of citizens referred to it as a momentous event. A lot of disillusionment concerning the lack of jobs, chronic breakdown in public services and a highly fragmented and polarised political context constitute the backdrop to this election. This is most visible among the youth who constitue above 60% of the population and where there is an unemployment rate of 47%. Many of them have not lived through the struggle against apartheid that their parents and elders faced. Their concerns are jobs, mobility and security.
I had the privilege to be part of a Short Term Observation (STO) mission led by His Excellency Jonathan Goodluck, former President of Nigeria on behalf of the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA). As Mauritius prepares to go for an election (either this or next year) there are some interesting issues that I wish to shine light on when it comes to the process and practice of an election. In fact, we are well aware that elections are never perfect but there should always be room and willingness for improvement.
Inclusion, Fairness and Representation
The above are increasingly the quintessential features of any election. However, it should not simply be seen in the intention but also in its practice. In the case of Mauritius, the issue of women to be fielded as candidates at each general election has been a constant struggle since no system or law exists (except for local elections) to ensure presence and representation of women. Moresoever, we are all aware that women's presence on the ballot depend on male leaders who often pay lip service to the cause. Over the years, South Africa has made tremendous strides in female political representation be it through gender equality enshrined as a constitutional right, the Equality Act and voluntary gender quotas in political parties. For the 2024 election (provincial, national and national) 42% of the candidates were female. Gender visibility trickled down to electoral staff and party agents where the majority were women and often in position of leadership such as the presiding officer. In fact, this was one of the major feature that all observation missions commended the South Africa's Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) - where 80% of the electoral staff were women. As for women party agent representation it reached 67%.
Voters' education is another key issue and unfortunately is rarely given due consideration. There were a number of activities / engagements spearheaded by the IEC that brought in community radios, social media platforms and voter education facilitators. The aim was to inform and educate voters on a number of issues pertaining to voter registration, 'Special Voting' (allows voters to vote on predetermined days prior to the set polling day either at a voting station or from their homes) and the 'Three Ballot System' (introduced in 2021 following the Constitutional Courtruling that mandates Parliament to devise a new electoral system that accommodates independent candidates). Since the late 1990s, the IEC has invested in electoral research and regularly engages voters through its 'Election Satisfaction Survey' aimed to (i) determine people's interest in, and perceptions of, the forthcoming elections, (ii) evaluate voting behaviour in South Africa, (iii) assess perceptions of voters on the performance of national, provincial and local government as it impacts on voter participation, (iv) examine the electoral and political involvement of specific groups such as women and youth and (v) evaluate people's trust in the Commisssion. This allows for a much more informed approach to elections.
Political party agents are often referred as the boots on the ground of parties/candidates during an election. If ill disciplined they can reflect on the quality of an election. For the 2019 elections, the ANC developed a "Party Agents' Manual" and in the run up to the 2024 election 80,000 party agents were trained. It is interested to note that this manual is accessible to all political parties in South Africa if they wish to make use of its content. In fact, whilst visiting different voting stations, observing the closing of the poll and staying on for the counting process, I was pleasantly surprised at the sense of cordiality and respect between different political agents. Their focus was to have their eyes on the ballot from the moment that a voter cast his/her vote to the counting and finally the announcement of the results by the presiding officer. Such dedication is indeed a rare feature in a political environment driven by money politics where the setting up of "baz" and other campaign paraphernalia have taken centre stage.
Media monitoring of election campaigns as well as polling day is critical in ensuring clean and safe elections. This is moreover important in an age of disinformation that research indicates reaches its peak during an election campaign. South Africa has a tradition of balanced and independent media but divisive sentiments such as xenophobia and polarised political discourse have created a very charged online and offline environment. The IEC took the lead in the run up to the election in engaging with tech companies such as Tik Tok, Meta and Google but also with one of the leading local media monitoring platforms - Media Monitoring Africa (MMA). MMA's real411.org was used to monitor disinformation/misinformation that allowed citizens to flag such content to relevant bodies. A consortium of the committed to factual and truthful journalism that saw fact checking organisations such as Africa Check and Snopes.com as well as the South African News Editors' Forum (SANEF) and the South African Press Council join forces.
Signed public pledge of the Code of Conduct (photo taken by the author).
Independence and Integrity
The independence and integrity of institutions are key to democracy and subsequently play an important role in ensuring elections are fair and competitive. During our briefings with the IEC, the Chairperson on several occasions declared that "the IEC does not fear in the way it acts and that there has never been any executive interference". In fact, the IEC's "independence", "impartiality" and that it must "exercise its powers and perform its function without fear, favour or prejudice" are clearly ascribed in the country's Constitution. It should also be noted that most political parties demonstrated respect and believed in the Commission's independence. No doubt, that was greatly facilitated by the regular consultations spearheaded by the IEC and its commissioners during and between elections. Regular briefings were held with the media and other stakeholders to ensure that everyone was up to speed with the latest updates be it voter turnout, the counting phase, the results cycle, etc. In fact, we all know the importance of official communication (especially when dealing with elections) to squash any rumours and/or fake news. This is perhaps something our own Electoral Commission Office should consider doing as this will minimize the need to fire fight and ensure a more structured means of communication.
Public broadcasters play an important role in the information landscape of elections. Many of them are funded or partly funded by public money. Their duty to objectivity, accuracy, fairness, impartiality and balance is enshrined in legislation and editorial policies. The SABC in addition to its own "Editorial Guidelines" on election reporting is bounded by the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) and the Independent Communication Authority of South Africa (ICASA). Particular attention is given to the presentation of "news during election periods so as to ensure attention is given to thorough examination of the views, policies and campaigns of all the main political parties". It was interesting to note the dynamic and engaging debates that SABC hosted pre-election and on election night and were never hesitant to be hard on the incumbent party. The fact that both ICASA and IBA are free from any form of political interference allows them to deliver on their mandate and ensure that the public broadcaster plays its required role especially during testing moments like an election. Unfortunately, in Mauritius we are very far from such a situation!
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Tools of Checks and Balances
South African political parties and candidates are required to sign and abide by a "Code of Conduct" found in the Electoral Act (Schedule 2, Section 99). Any breach to the code is guilty of a criminal offence and can be fined or sent to prison for up to 10 years. To demonstrate not only the legal but also the moral aspect of the "Code of Conduct", all political parties were convened by the IEC to publicly pledge to the code and ensure due adherence.
The Electoral Act (Chapter 5) provides for an "Electoral Court" with the status of a Supreme Court. Among its key powers/ duties/functions is "to review any decision of the Commission relating to an electoral matter and any such review shall be conducted on an urgent basis and be disposed of as expeditiously as possible". Not only is the Electoral Court a dedicated one but matters are dealt in an expeditious manner. One is reminded of the lengthy and tedious process that the post electoral petitions were handled following the 2019 general election in the process causing frustration to both the petitioners and respondents.
Elections are a democratic experiment that should involve all stakeholders be it citizens, political parties and institutions to ensure a collective buy in. As mentioned earlier no election is perfect but the latter can be improved by embracing some of the good practices of other countries. Mauritius' good reputation in holding elections and especially the fact that the Electoral Commissioner has earned the respect of his peers can be the stepping stone for the forthcoming election to be clean, competitive and fair
