VOTING

1. Who can vote?

To qualify to vote in an election, you must:

• Have your name on the Electoral Roll for your Electorate. NOT have already voted in your electorate or elsewhere during the election.
• Give your full name to the Presiding Officer, as well as any other information he or she may require to identify you as a voter.

2. Do I have to vote?

It is not compulsory to vote. BUT, your vote counts. It is important.

3.What will the ballot paper look like?

The ballot paper is a separate piece of paper and will look like the one below. It will contain the listed numbers or preferences 1, 2, and 3, with brackets beside each box. This is to show that a voter has three choices to make, beside each number. The boxed number 1 is used to indicate the voter’s most preferred candidate (1st choice). The boxed number 2 is used for the second preferred candidate (2nd choice) and boxed number 3 for the third preferred candidate (3rd choice).

Sample of Ballot Paper

4. What is a Candidate Poster?

A Candidate Poster is a separate document from the ballot paper. It is a poster that contains the photographs, names, and assigned Candidate Code Numbers of all the candidates in an electorate.
In order to mark your ballot paper correctly, you must view the Candidate Poster and determine which three candidates are your top three choices i.e. 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice candidates.
Sample of Candidate Poster

5.So how do I vote?

A.This LPV system requires the voter to make three (3) choices of candidates. You should view the Candidate Poster and see the assigned code numbers and names of your top three choices. You must then write either the names OR candidate code numbers of your three most preferred candidates on the ballot paper.
For example, on the ballot paper,
o Write either the Candidate Code Number OR the name of the candidate who is your first choice beside the number 1.
o Secondly, write the Candidate Code Number OR name of the candidate who is your second choice beside the number 2.
o Finally, write the Candidate Code Number OR name of the candidate who is your third choice beside the number 3.

6. Where can I get the ballot paper?

At a polling place or by applying for a postal vote.

7. Can I photocopy a blank ballot paper and fill it in?

No. Never.

8. Will the Electoral Commission accept votes on anything but a proper ballot paper?

No. Never.

9. If I make a mistake on the ballot paper what can I do?

You can give it back to the polling official and you will be given a new one. The polling official will then put the ballot paper with mistakes in a special envelope marked Spoilt Ballot Papers. Spoilt ballot papers are not counted.

10. I am in prison. Can I vote?

Yes, if you are in jail for less than 9 months. No, if you are in jail for more than 9 months.

11. I want to vote in an electorate but I no longer live there. Can I?

No, if you are living away from an electorate for more than 6 months you must transfer your enrolment to your place of residence before the Issue of Writs. You will then vote in the electorate of which your current place of residence falls within. Please contact your Provincial Election Manager for amendment of your enrolment details.

12. If I don't want to vote in the electorate where I am living, do I have a choice where I can vote?

No. Where you vote is not a matter of choice. It's a matter of law. You must vote in the electorate where you live. For example, you are not allowed under law to vote in the electorate of the place of your birth, if the place of your birth is not your current place of residence.

13. My name is not on the Electoral Roll. Can I vote?

No – you are not qualified to vote and cannot vote. You must first be qualified to enrol and make every effort to put your name on the Electoral Roll before the Issue of writs, before you can vote.

14. As the Head of the Family, can I vote for the members of my family who are 18 years or older?

No. You are breaking the law if you vote more than once. The law gives one person, ONLY one vote. All qualified voters in your family, must cast their own vote.

15. Can somebody else fill in the ballot paper for me?

If you cannot read and write, are blind, have a disability, have injured or lost your writing hand in an accident, you can get help from the polling official.

16. So when is a ballot paper informal?

• It is blank i.e. the voter has not indicated a preference for any candidate
• A cross (x) or a tick ( ) or alphabetical number (A, B, or C) or numbers 1, 2, 3, has been used has been used to indicate a voter‟s preferences, instead of the candidates‟ code numbers and/or names.
• In the case of 4 candidates or more, the voter has not written the candidate’s code numbers and/or names for the three candidates.
• In the case of only 3 candidates, the voter has not written the candidate’s code numbers and/or names for the first two preferences.
• In the case of only two candidates, the voter has not written the candidate’s code number and or name/for the first preference.
• It is not signed or initialed by the Presiding Officer, or has no official mark.
• It has a mark or writing on it which in the opinion of the officer conducting the scrutiny, means the voter can be identified.

17. How is the winner elected?

For a candidate to be elected under the LPV system, they must receive more than 50% + 1 of the total formal votes cast in the election. This is called an Absolute Majority. Once a candidate has reached an Absolute Majority, they can be declared elected, because no other candidate can obtain a greater number of votes.