An unprecedented number of contestants will be vying for seats in the May 29 elections. Close to 15 000 people have been nominated to contest a total of 887 seats in the National Assembly and all nine provincial legislatures.
Gauteng leads the pack by far with the highest number of contestants. This was revealed by the IEC as it published lists of political party candidates and independents for inspection and objections. The cut-off date for objections is Wednesday at 5pm.
The race for the national and provincial polls will be congested due to the high number of political parties and independents, jostling for a place at the finishing line.
The spread of the candidates is as follows: 4 323 candidates have been nominated to contest the compensatory seats in the National Assembly which is only contested by political parties on a closed list basis, meaning 21 political parties are vying for a seat on average.
Meanwhile, 3 596 candidates have been nominated to contest the regional seats in the National Assembly. These seats are contested by political parties and independents, resulting in an average of 18 contestants per seat.
According to the IEC, the biggest regional election ballot will be in the Gauteng region, with 40 political parties and two independent candidates.
And lastly, 6 743 candidates have been nominated to contest the nearly 450 seats available in the nine provincial legislatures. The biggest ballot will be in Gauteng with 42 political parties and two independent candidates.
Seven independent candidates will contest the regional elections and six will contest the provincial legislature elections. The region with the greatest number of independent candidates is Limpopo, with three candidates.
The final list of candidates contesting the elections will be published by the Commission on the 10 April 2024.
