Millions vote as 98% of stations open, but stolen ballots and protests mar local elections

South Africans turned out early on Wednesday and millions had cast their ballots by mid-morning, as the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) reported that 98% of the country’s 23 696 voting stations had opened by 7am.

Preliminary figures read out at 10am put 3 523 691 voters having cast their votes across the nine provinces. Gauteng recorded the highest number at 895 384, followed by KwaZulu-Natal with 623 380, the Western Cape with 461 264 and the Eastern Cape with 431 123. Limpopo recorded 366 378 votes, Mpumalanga 252 859, North West 204 736, Free State 195 537 and Northern Cape 93 030.

IEC Deputy Chief Electoral Officer Masego Sheburi, giving an afternoon update from the Results Operations Centre at Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand, said voting was proceeding well across the country and the Commission was encouraged by voters who arrived at stations in the early hours.

“The Commission urges all the remaining registered voters to use the remaining hours of voting to cast their ballots and exercise their democratic right to participate in the 2026 Local Government Elections,” Sheburi said.

He said handheld barcode scanners attached to Voter Management Devices and sequence numbers on the voters’ roll had been introduced to speed up verification and cut the time voters spend at stations. “The Voter Management Devices are functioning optimally, supporting the smooth processing and verification of voters at voting stations,” he said.

The opening was not uniform everywhere. The Commission reported that a few voting stations opened by 9am because of localised protests and access problems caused by heavy rain in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. All ballot papers had since been delivered to stations, with only a few deliveries completed shortly after voting began.

In Ward 2 in eThekwini, KwaZulu-Natal, the Commission received a report of the theft of unused ballot papers and a stamp at one voting station. The ward has 20 voting stations, and Sheburi said measures were in place to identify the ballots should they surface, since a ballot must be validated by a stamp on the back.

“A case has been opened with the South African Police Service (SAPS), and our staff has been relieved of their duty for their dereliction at that voting station,” he said.

Sheburi reminded voters that the number of ballot papers they receive depends on the type of municipality they are registered in. Voters in local municipalities receive three ballots: a grey ballot for a ward councillor, a green ballot for a political party in the local council and a yellow ballot for political party representatives to the district council. Voters in metropolitan municipalities receive two: a grey ballot for their ward councillors and a green ballot for their preferred party in the metropolitan council.

Only one candidate or party may be selected per ballot. Marking more than one choice, or making additional marks, may result in the ballot being declared spoilt.

The Commission acknowledged the Department of Home Affairs for making its offices available for identity document collection and ID applications, and agencies and security structures operating through the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (NATJOINTS) for maintaining a safe and secure electoral environment.

This report is drawn from the IEC’s media briefing as published by SAnews (South African Government News Agency): https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/smooth-start-2026-local-government-elections. The figures cited are the Commission’s preliminary numbers as at 10am and are not a final turnout count.