Ballot paper photos land Lulekani voter in court as police hunt second man
A 32-year-old is due before Lulekani Magistrate's Court on Thursday after allegedly photographing his marked ballot at Chuchekani Primary School, with a second voter still sought.
A 32-year-old man is due to appear in the Lulekani Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, charged with contravening the Electoral Act 73 of 1998 after he allegedly photographed his marked ballot paper at a voting station in Limpopo.
Police say the incident at Chuchekani Primary School in the Humulani settlement happened at about 10:00 on Monday, 2 November. The presiding officer confronted the voter and told him that photographing a marked ballot paper is against electoral rules.
A second voter allegedly did the same thing at about 13:40. According to the police account, when the presiding officer confronted him he became aggressive, verbally insulted her and left the voting station. Ten minutes later, one of the two men allegedly posted an image of his marked ballot paper on his social media status.
The presiding officer reported both incidents to the Electoral Commission of South Africa and was advised to open a case with the police. The case was reported after the voting station had closed and both men had already left the premises.
The 32-year-old was arrested on Tuesday, 3 November. Police say a manhunt is under way for the second suspect, and that investigations are continuing.
Photographing a marked ballot is prohibited under the electoral law because it allows a vote to be proved to whoever paid for it or pressured it out of the voter, which undermines the secrecy of the ballot. The police statement does not say what the two men are alleged to have intended, and no such allegation has been put on the record.
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