By Lee-Yandra Paulsen

The recent national voter registration weekend in South Africa has drawn significant participation, with citizens gearing up for the impending elections once President Cyril Ramaphosa announces the date. The Electoral Officer for the Western Cape, Michael Hendrickse, shared insights into the registration statistics during an interview with VOC Breakfast on Tuesday.

“In the Western Cape, we witnessed 227,620 registration activities, including 51,343 new registrations. Among the newly registered voters, 35,388 fall under the category of young people under the age of 30,” Hendrickse reported. He further highlighted those registrations for those under 20 years old amounted to 13,882 in the province.

Of the total registrations, 193,888 individuals were recorded at voting stations, emphasizing the predominant preference for in-person registration. Online registrations accounted for 33,670, indicating a growing reliance on digital platforms for the registration process.

Post-registration weekend, the Western Cape now boasts over 3.19 million eligible voters, with approximately 40,000 falling into the under-20 age group. Hendrickse expressed enthusiasm about the substantial participation of young voters in the upcoming elections.

“It is amazing to see so many young people engaging in the democratic process,” he remarked. Hendrickse also conveyed that registration remains open through the online platform (www.elections.org.za), and another registration weekend is scheduled for the upcoming week, providing additional opportunities for citizens to register and exercise their voting rights.

VOC News

Photo: X/@IECSouthAfrica