Johannesburg – The Electoral Court has authorised the postponement of by-elections scheduled to be held during March 2021 due to continued COVID-19 level 3 lockdown restrictions which prohibit political activities.
This comes after the Electoral Commission (IEC) approached the Electoral Court for approval to extend the period within which the by-elections scheduled to be held on 3 March 2021 and 31 March 2021, to a date not beyond 120 days from the date of the Court Order.
The postponement of by-elections brings the number to 24 ward by-elections, which have been postponed since the start of 2021 due to second COVID-19 wave and its associated restrictions.
The Electoral Court on 4 February 2021 authorised the postponement of the by-elections scheduled between 20 January and 17 February 2021 in Gauteng, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Free State, Mpumalanga and Limpopo.
The by-elections, which were scheduled to take place on 03 March and 31 March 2021 in Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Limpopo, have also been postponed.
“All these by-elections have now been rescheduled for 19 May 2021 along with those by-elections which had previously been postponed, as announced in a media release on 11 January 2021,” the Electoral Commission said in a statement on Tuesday.
– SAnews.gov.za
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