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“Promoting and protecting the political rights of citizens”

Code of conduct during elections

South Africa 2024 National and Provincial Elections

Political parties that will be participating in the provincial election

are bound by the Constitution and required to sign a code of conduct for
these elections. The Republic of South Africa is founded upon the values
of universal suffrage by adult citizens, a national Common Voters Roll,
regular elections, and a multi-party system of democratic governance,
amongst others.

These values are enshrined in Section 1of the founding provisions

of our Constitution which declares that:

“The Republic of South Africa is one, sovereign, democratic state

founded on the

following values:

...

(d) Universal adult suffrage, a national common voter’s roll,

regular elections and a multi-party system of democratic
government, to ensure accountability,

responsiveness and openness.”

Voting is therefore a constitutional value and a “fundamental right”

which should be preserved as it is also the “essence of our democratic
society.” The day that the conduct of regular elections and a multi-party
system of democratic governance will cease to function in South Africa
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is the day that the very foundation upon which the Republic was build
would erode.

The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa in Section 19

specifically confers to citizens the right to free, fair and regular elections
of any legislative body that is established in terms of the constitution,
including the right to vote in those elections, and in secret. Our purpose
of being as the Electoral Commission is accordingly to give impetus and
enforce these constitutional provisions. The mandate of the Electoral
Commission is to promote and protect political rights as entrenched in
section 19 of the Bill of Rights. The Commission does this without fear,
favour or prejudice.

The Commission is ever cognisant of the fact that the act of voting
is more than just a mere ticking of a box. Voting is a process that is
intended to culminate with the selection of a particular candidate by an
individual voter on Election Day and should be done so within a
transparent, free and fair environment. The Commission holds the view
that a free and fair electoral outcome flows from a free and fair,
transparent process. This process begins with the responsibility of
registering to vote by eligible voters, followed by a series of deliberate
actions, decisions and thorough planning on our part.

The conduct of regular, free and fair elections is every citizen’s

constitutional right. It is also every citizens constitutional right to form a
political party, participate in the activities of that political party, recruit
members and to also campaign for a political party of your choice,
including to stand for public office and to hold it if so elected!
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The Electoral Commission has over time bolstered its commitment

to the protection of the rights of voters, political parties and candidates
by entrenching within its operations, high levels of norms, values and
standards to which all officials comply with to promote equity in all
aspects of the electoral milestones – be it from voter registration,
registration of political parties, review of election laws, appointment and
training of electoral staff, registration of candidate lists, the conduct of
the campaign period, the distribution and placement of polling stations,
the accreditation of election observers, the process of actual voting, the
vote count, and the announcement and publication of the results.
Throughout all these processes, the Commission has ensured that it
remains a true defender of the electoral rights of the South African
citizens. For in terms of the Electoral Commission Act, the functions of
the Commission include to “ensure that any election is free and fair, and
to promote conditions conductive to free and fair elections.”

Over the past years the Commission has also had to review its
election legislation(through petition and by own initiative) with a view of
expanding voting rights to cover citizens who are either in prison,
expatriates, the physically infirm and the elderly, including registered
voters who for whatever reason cannot vote within their regular places
of residence on voting day. Furthermore, the Commission is of the view
that equal access to suffrage by all citizens is the very backbone of
democracy, and the Commission rightfully takes pride in the fact that no
matter how privileged or seemingly disadvantaged someone is, each
person’s vote counts equally. Hence the Commissions continues to
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ensure that voting laws reflect this fundamental belief of making the
ballot box equally accessible to all.

The Commission has also expanded its systems of voting, for example,
the Commission has refined the Braille ballot paper template, and also
enhanced the queue management to ensure that the visually impaired,
the elderly and physically infirm are able to vote with dignity.

The vote of each and every citizen is a badge of dignity and of

personhood. Quite literally, it says that everybody counts. In a country
with significant disparities along the lines of wealth and power such as
South Africa, the ballot declares that whoever we are, whether rich or
poor, exalted or disgraced, we all belong to the same democratic South
African nation and that our destinies are intertwined in this single act.

The Commission conducts signing of the code of conduct to also convey

its assurance and commitment to ensuring that elections are once again
held in a free and fair environment for all. Political parties and
candidates are called upon to publicly sign a code of conduct for
elections, and to affirm their commitment to tolerate and respect each
other during the election period. Elections are a contest wherein like in
any other contest there would ultimately be winners and losers; and a
dose of tolerance and respect would go a long way in ensuring a
peaceful contest.

The code of conduct that is signed is developed in consultation

with the Political Party Liaison Committee, and ushers in a regulatory
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regime during the period of election campaigning up until Election Day

that will regulate the conduct of and interrelations by contesting political
parties and candidates during this period, to ensure that there is
tolerance of democratic political activity and free political campaigning
and open public debates. This is another of our ways of protecting the
rights of political parties and candidates, including voters during this
period in order to promote free, fair and orderly elections.

The Code is binding to every party contesting an election and

provides for an array of roles and responsibilities for stakeholders in an
election, including the Commission, women, the media and political
parties.

Specifically, the Code requires every registered party and every

candidate to comply with its provisions and to instruct every person who
holds political office in the party, its representatives, members, and
supporters to comply with it. It also prohibits conduct such as violence,
intimidation, publication of false or defamatory allegations etc., in
connection with the elections.

The following constitutes prohibited conduct by all persons,

including registered political parties:

 Use of language or act in a way that may provoke violence

during an election; and the intimidation of candidates, members of
parties, representatives, or supporters of parties or candidates, or
voters.
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 Publication of false or defamatory allegations in connection

with an election in respect of; a party, its candidates, representatives
or members, or a candidate or that candidate’s representatives.

 Carrying or displaying arms or weapons at a political meeting

or in any march, demonstration, rally or other public political event.

 Defacing or unlawfully removing or destroying billboards,

placards, posters or any other election materials of a party or
candidate.

 Abusing a position of power, privilege or influence, including

parental, patriarchal, traditional or employment authority to influence
the conduct or outcome of an election.

Furthermore, the Code requires the parties to recognise the

authority of the Commission and to assure voters of the Commission’s
impartiality. In terms of the Electoral Act, no person or registered party
bound by the Code may contravene or fail to comply with its provisions.

In terms of this Act, contravention of the Code has serious legal

consequences. These include criminal sanctions where a person
convicted may be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of between five
and ten years. Furthermore the Electoral Court can impose sanctions of
inter alia a fine not exceeding R200 000, an order reducing the number
of votes cast in favour of a party, an order disqualifying any candidate of
a party or an order cancelling the registration of a party. In addition, the
Act empowers the Chief Electoral Officer to institute civil proceedings to
enforce the provisions of the Act and the Code.
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Where necessary, the Electoral Commission will not hesitate to

institute such proceedings. We also remind political parties to take
appropriate legal action in cases where the Code has been infringed.

By participating in the code signing public event, political parties

present are encouraged to make the Code of Conduct a living
document. This becomes even more important as the elections contest
heats up. We owe it to all South Africans and to the world to conduct
ourselves in an exemplary manner. Let’s ensure that we participate in
the elections in such a way that we strengthen our democracy and that
we make future generations proud of our achievements.