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ANC vs IEC: Party Takes Candidate List Dispute to Electoral Court
The party says a system glitch blocked 2,274 nominees from being formally submitted and could cost it seats in six municipalities.
- On Tuesday, September 8, 2026, the ANC will brief the media regarding its Electoral Court challenge to the Independent Electoral Commission's nomination deadline, seeking to overturn the exclusion of members who missed the August 28 cutoff.
- The controversy began last week when the ANC alleged a technical glitch prevented it from capturing all candidates on the IEC system; the party insists its officials uploaded documents on time, despite the electoral body's refusal to accept late lists.
- Omissions from proportional representation lists include ANC veteran Frank Chikane, Deputy Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Nocawe Mafu, and former ANC Youth League deputy president Andile Lungisa, affecting candidates across KZN, Mpumalanga, and the Eastern Cape.
- Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula faces mounting pressure from National Executive Committee members demanding accountability for the omissions, as the failure to submit lists threatens the ANC's representation in six municipalities ahead of the November 4 Local Government Elections.
- Arguing that system failures disenfranchise communities, the ANC filed papers with the Electoral Court to force inclusion, though the IEC remains firm that late lists will not be included in the upcoming elections.
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ANC's court papers thin on proof of IEC glitch, strong on legal technicality
The African National Congress (ANC) has not yet proved that an Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) technical failure prevented it from submitting its candidate lists. Its court papers establish that the party experienced difficulty completing the online process. They do not establish what caused that difficulty. The distinction matters, because a failure in the IEC’s system could support the ANC’s case. A missed step, expired session, or …
"At 16:34, the ANC administrators were kicked out of the system and taken back to the landing page," Fikile Mbalula explained in court documents.
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Total News Sources10
Leaning Left0Leaning Right1Center1Last UpdatedBias Distribution50% Center, 50% Right
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources are Center, 50% of the sources lean Right
50% Right
C 50%
R 50%
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