The path to e-voting: How the IEC is shaping South Africa's electoral future

The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has decided to try e-voting again, and it is now in the policy-making stage.

IEC senior manager in the office of the CEO, Dr Victor Shale, said the commission aims to be at the forefront of innovation. 

“We want to make sure that elections add value to democracy,” Shale said. 

Shale said that having undertaken significant work since 2013, the IEC is now in the policy-making phase.

He said that policy begins when identifying an issue. 

“Whether we like it or not, digital technology in elections is inevitable. We are using digital technology in elections, in one way or the other,” Shale said. 

He said they have done research and continue to do research. They also read and familiarise themselves with comparative studies throughout the globe. They now know what is there. 

Shale explained that because they are a public institution, a policy development process ought to be comprehensive and thoroughly consolidated. 

He said that from last Thursday’s stakeholder session with the academia on e-voting, they will be able to identify policy options, followed by the policy adoption, where they will need to clearly define the structure, systems and regulations pertaining to e-voting. 

“So we are in a process, making very steady progress towards a desired goal."

He added that in policy-making, you have to consistently evaluate the performance of adopted policy systems and structures. 

Shale said these are some of the considerations they have:

• Legislative review 
• Public education 
• Infrastructure development 
• Training 
• Piloting 

He clarified that they have been working on e-voting since 2013, however, it is not something you can put together and do. 

“You take time, you test systems, you make sure that everything is working,” Shale said. 

Shale said the commission continues public consultations and public dialogues, which have been happening since March. This phase is expected to end by September. 

He said that following consultations, the resulting outputs will be reviewed.

Shale said that the commission anticipates that by March 2026, it will be in a position to draft a green paper. This will be followed by formal legislative processes until it becomes a policy, maybe then causing electoral reform in terms of amending the Electoral Act. 

IEC provincial electoral officer KZN Ntombifuthi Masinga said they wanted to ensure that whatever the electoral commission does, they take it to Parliament eventually. It has to be the outcome of a consultative process with a variety of stakeholders. 

“If we pursue electronic voting as the electoral commission, it can never be for our convenience as an institution. It has to be for the benefit of the voter at the voting station. It needs to result in efficiencies at that level,” Masinga said. 

Cape Argus