Government Gazette

Vol.400, No. 19388, 16 October 1998

Regulation Gazette No. 6327

GOVERNMENT NOTICE

No. R. 1340

ELECTORAL COMMISSION

REGULATIONS CONCERNING THE REGISTRATION OF VOTERS

The Electoral Commission has in terms of section 100 of the Electoral Act, 1998 (Act No.73 of 1998), made the regulations set out in the Schedule.

SCHEDULE

Definitions

1. In these regulations any word or expression to which a meaning has been assigned in the Act shall have that meaning and, unless the context otherwise indicates -

  1. "identity number", in relation to a person, means the identity number assigned to a person whose particulars are included in the population register and which appears in the identity document of such person; (iv)
  2. "local electoral officer" means a person appointed as such by the chief electoral officer; (vi)
  3. "name", in relation to a voters' roll, means the surname followed by the full forenames of a person; (v)
  4. "participating party" means a parry referred to in section 27 of the Act; (i)
  5. "registration officer" means a person appointed as such by the chief electoral officer; (vii)
  6. "Signature", for the purposes of any application made in terms of these regulations, means the signature, thumbprint, fingerprint or palm-print of, or cross or mark made by the applicant; (iii)
  7. "the Act" means the Electoral Act, 1998 (Act No. 73 of 1998). (ii)

Application for registration as voter

2. (1) A person who applies for registration as a voter must complete an application form similar to Appendix 1 and

  1. the applicant must in person submit the completed application form, together with his or her identity document, to a registration officer at a place identified by the chief electoral officer within the voting district or in respect of the voting district where he or she is ordinarily resident; or
  2. a person who is by reason of a physical disability unable to travel to a place so identified may, by means of an application made on a form similar to Appendix 2, apply to the local electoral officer to be visited by a registration officer to whom he or she may then in person submit the application form for registration as a voter and his or her identity document; or
  3. a person who is absent from the Republic in the service of the Government of the Republic or who is a member of such person's household may in person submit the application form and identity document to a registration officer, appointed for that purpose, at the place where such service is rendered.

(2) Every registered political party is entitled to be represented by an agent, duly authorised thereto in writing by the party concerned on a form similar to Appendix 3 at any place referred to in subregulation (1)(a), for the purpose of observing the registration process of voters.

(3) In every case where a registration officer refuses to accept an application for registration as a voter, such registration officer must immediately complete and hand to the applicant a notification of refusal in a form similar to Appendix 4.

Application to have change of name or ordinary residence

3. A registered voter or a person who has applied for registration as a voter and whose name or ordinary place of residence has changed, and who must apply to have that change recorded in the voters' roll or application form, must do so by completing an application form similar to Appendix 5 and -

  1. submitting it, together with his or her identity document, in person to a registration officer at a place identified by the chief electoral officer within the voting district or in respect of the voting district where he or she is ordinarily resident; or
  2. submitting it, together with his or her identity document, in person to an official at an office of a local electoral officer; or
  3. if he or she is, because of a physical disability, unable to travel to such an office, causing the application form to be submitted to an official at the office of a local electoral officer by someone else who must, when doing so, submit his or her own identity document to the official.

Application for Reregistration as voter

4. A registered voter who wishes to apply for Reregistration as a voter, must do so by completing a form similar to Appendix 6 and -

  1. submitting it, together with his or her identity document, in person to an official at an office of a local electoral officer; or
  2. if he or she is, because of a physical disability, unable to travel to such an office, causing the application form to be submitted to an official at the office of a local electoral officer by someone else who must, when doing so, submit his or her own identity document to the official..

Notification by chief electoral officer

5. Whenever the chief electoral officer is in terms of section 12 of the Act required to notify a person of an event referred to in that section, he or she must do so by -

  1. posting the notification to the last postal address available for that person; c.
  2. cause the notification to be delivered by hand to that person's last known residential address; or
  3. cause the notification to be published in a newspaper circulating in the area of that person's last known ordinary residence; or
  4. cause the notification to be displayed on public notice boards at the offices of the provincial electoral officer and the local electoral officer for the area in which that person had his or her last known ordinary residence.

Appeal to Commission against decisions and steps of chief electoral officer

6. (1) A person wishing to appeal against a decision or step taken by thy chief electoral officer in terms of sections 8, 9 or 11 of the Act, must do so by serving on the Commission at its offices in Pretoria a notice of appeal containing the following information:

  1. the name, address and identity number of the appellant;
  2. details of the decision or step against which the appeal is brought;
  3. the full reasons for appealing against the decision or step; and
  4. particulars of any documentation submitted together with the notice of appeal.

(2) The Commission may require

  1. the appellant to submit further information regarding the appeal; and
  2. the chief electoral officer to furnish reasons for his or her decision or step taken or to supply any further documentation regarding the appeal.

(3) l he Commission may -

  1. decide the appeal on the documents submitted to it; or
  2. require the appellant, the chief electoral officer or any other person to appear before the Commission, either in person or through a representative, at a time and place determined by the Commission, to give evidence.

(4) The Commission may confirm, vary or set aside the decision or step appealed against.

Objections to voters' roll

7. A person wishing to object to the Commission in relation to the voters' roll or provisional voters' roll in terms of section 15 of the Act, must do so by serving on the Commission at its offices in Pretoria a notice of objection containing the following information:

  1. the objector's full names, identity number, postal address and home or office address;
  2. full details of the exclusion, inclusion or correctness of details the objection relates to;
  3. the reasons for making the objection; and
  4. details of supporting documentation accompanying the notice of objection.

Fee for certified copy of or extract from voters' roll

8. The fee to be paid in terms of section 16 of the Act for a certified copy of, or extract from, a segment of the voters' roll, is One Rand (R1) per page: Provided that in the case of a participating political party, the first certified copy of the voters' roll to be used for a particular election or for elections to be held simultaneously, will be provided to such party at no cost.

Fee for certified copy of map of voting district

9. The fee to be paid in terms of section 63 of the Act for a certified copy of a map of a voting district is Fifty Rand (R50): Provided that a political party that is represented on the National or a Provincial Party Liaison Committee established in terms of section 5(1)(9) of the Electoral Commission Act, 1996 (Act No. 51 of 1996), will be entitled to one certified copy of a map of each voting district at no cost.

Particulars to be entered in the voters' roll

10. The particulars to be entered in the voters' roll when registering a person as a voter, are the consecutive number, the identity number and the name of the voter.

Registration in voting district

11. When registering a person in terms of section 8(1) of the Act or when recording a change of ordinary place of residence in terms of section 9(3) of the Act, or when changing the registration details in terms of section 11(1) of the Act, the chief electoral officer must ensure that the voter concerned is registered in the voting district in which he or she is ordinarily resident at that time.

Short title

12. These regulations are called the Voter Registration Regulations, 1998.