The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) has issued a notice of cancellation of registration of inactive political parties in the country.
In a statement, the Commission said that it has informed 192 political parties of its intention to cancel their registration due to their inactive status and failure to renew their registration by the end of January this year.
Most notably, amongst them is one of the country’s oldest parties and ANC alliance partner, South African Communist Party (SACP).
The commission said that there are 609 registered political parties of which 383 are registered on a national level while the balance of 226 are either registered provincially or at municipal level.
“All affected parties have in terms of section 17 of the Electoral Commission Act 51 of 1996 been informed and given due notice, in writing, of the intention to cancel their registration,” read the statement from the IEC.
These parties have 10 days left or (until 24 March 2025) to make representations as to why they shouldn’t be deregistered.
According to the IEC, the affected parties are not represented in any legislative body, have not contested general elections since they were registered, or have not renewed their registration by 31 January 2025.
The commission has reiterated that political parties registered on its database continue to enjoy several benefits.
“There are a number of benefits that accrue from registration as a party.
These are, among others, that the political party is entitled to protection by the Commission of its full name, abbreviation of its name, and its logo or symbol.
Among those is that a party that is not represented in a Municipal Council, Provincial Legislature or the National Assembly must indicate to the Commission its continued existence.
This prescribed indication must be received before the end of January each year,” highlighted the statement.
Given increased contestation in elections and the ever-increasing entrance of new political parties, it has always been a practice by the IEC to deregister parties with no intention of contesting future elections.
