Elections 2024 | IEC prioritises youth Democracy Education: Tessa Dooms
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 26 ก.ย. 2024
- Ahead of the 2024 general elections the Electoral Commission has prioritised democracy education for the youth of South Africa. This is aimed not just at school learners but also the youth at tertiary educational institutions and those outside of formal educational and workplace structures.
In South Africa, the youth played a historically important role in achieving electoral democracy. They were active citizens and made an immense contribution towards the liberation of this country. Many of them even lost their lives in the pursuit of freedom and the democracy that we all enjoy today. However, young people in the post-apartheid era form part of the phenomenon of electoral abstention, which is becoming prevalent in many countries the world over.
For example, voter turnout during the 2021 municipal elections was a mere 46%, which was the lowest in the history of democratic South Africa. During the 2021 municipal elections, nearly 1,8 million eligible 18-19-year-olds did not register to vote. This translates into 1,8 million lost potential votes in these elections, because one cannot vote if one is not registered to vote, and consequently not on the voter's roll.
Tessa Dooms, Director at Rivonia Circle joins us for a conversation.
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I registered to vote on 12 February.
I found out this week that the IEC has not placed me on the voter's roll. They cannot explain what happened to my registration or why the website indicated my registration was successful. Thewy are more than happy to tell me i simply cannot vote and that it is the applicants responsisbility to make sure they are registered. HOWEVER I followed all instructions and completed the registration with the website indicating it was successful. Please investigate how many people are denied their vote on election day due to their name not being on the voters roll. Even though they say they did register.