Election law amendments bill tabled before parliament

South Sudan’s Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Wek Mamer Kuol, on Wednesday tabled amendments to the National Elections Act, 2012, before the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA), beginning the parliamentary process for changes to the country’s electoral law.

Presenting the National Elections Act, 2012 (Amendment) Bill, 2026, for its first reading, Mamer said the proposed changes are intended to address inconsistencies in the existing law and align it with the Transitional Constitution of 2011, as amended.

“The purpose of this bill is to amend provisions of the National Election Act 2012 … in order to harmonise the inconsistencies and ensure its conformity with the Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan 2011 as amended,” Mamer told lawmakers.

The bill was then presented to the assembly for consideration at the first-reading stage.

TNLA acting spokesperson Oliver Mori Benjamin said the bill contains two chapters and 17 sections, including provisions governing the executive and the composition of parliament during and after elections.

Mori said the bill provides that the incumbent president would remain in office with all powers provided for under the constitution during the election period.

He also said the proposed law requires the president to remove the first vice president and other vice presidents of their positions three months before the election date.

The bill proposes a 332-member elected parliament, with 50% of seats allocated to geographical constituencies, 35% to women and 15% to party lists, according to Mori.

The amendments come as South Sudan prepares for elections scheduled for Dec. 22, following repeated extensions of a transitional period established under a 2018 peace agreement.

On Sept. 11, the Council of Ministers approved amendments to the National Elections Act, 2012, as amended in 2023. The proposed changes include restoring the 102 geographical constituencies used in the 2010 elections and providing for a 332-member National Legislative Assembly.

Under the current roadmap, the transitional government is due to be dissolved on Sept. 22, while the transitional period is scheduled to expire in February.

President Salva Kiir on Tuesday dismissed National Elections Commission chairperson Abednego Akok Kacuol, about three months before the scheduled elections. No reason was publicly given for his dismissal.

Akok was replaced by Gabriel Bol Deng Majok, who previously served as the commission’s secretary general.

Political analyst Abraham Kuol Nyuon, dean of the University of Juba Graduate College, told Radio Tamazuj that the change in leadership could complicate preparations for the elections, including voter registration.

The bill must go through further stages of parliamentary consideration before it can become law.

Under Article 85(1) of South Sudan’s Transitional Constitution, once a bill has been passed by the National Legislature, the president has 30 days to assent to and sign it into law.

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