IEC reports isolated election incidents across Limpopo

LIMPOPO – While the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) says the 2026 Local Government Elections in Limpopo were largely peaceful, it has confirmed several isolated incidents across the province, including threats against election officials, power outages and arrests linked to alleged election offences.

The Commission provided the update during a joint media briefing with police at the Provincial Results Operations Centre at The Ranch on Thursday, November 5.

The IEC said ballot papers from Tinghitsi Lower Primary School in Ward 23, Greater Tzaneen, could not be counted after electoral staff were allegedly threatened following the close of voting.

The ballot boxes were returned to the Municipal Electoral Office without being counted. The Commission said guidance on the way forward would be provided but did not indicate when a decision would be made.

In a separate incident, two men were arrested after allegedly intimidating IEC officials at the Greater Tzaneen Municipal Electoral Office.

According to the Commission, the suspects allegedly demanded that a ballot box containing special votes, delivered for secure overnight storage, be opened and counted in their presence.

The IEC said the incident disrupted the sealing and quarantine process of the ballot box and resulted in minor damage following a disagreement involving political agents and supporters of a political party.

The suspects are expected to appear before the Tzaneen Magistrate’s Court on charges relating to interference with IEC officials.

In Musina, members of a political party allegedly threatened to disrupt voting at Makushu Primary School after objecting to a ruling by the presiding officer. SAPS members intervened and the situation was resolved without further disruption.

Two separate incidents involving voters who allegedly photographed their marked ballot papers and shared the images on social media were also reported in Ba-Phalaborwa and Greater Giyani. The suspects are expected to appear before the Lulekani and Giyani magistrates’ courts respectively.

READ MORE: Lulekani voter arrested after alleged ballot photo incident

The IEC reiterated that photographing marked ballot papers is prohibited because it compromises the secrecy of the ballot.

The Commission also reported electricity disruptions at several voting stations during the election.

In Lepelle-Nkumpi, a transformer exploded on the evening of November 3 at Rakgoatha Primary School, leaving the voting station without electricity throughout Election Day. Rechargeable lights were deployed to ensure voting could continue.

At Phishoana Primary School, electricity disruptions affected the battery life of Voter Management Devices, with rechargeable lights used as backup.

In the Ga-Matlala area of Polokwane, several voting stations were affected by power outages following the theft of electricity cables and hail damage to transformers. Eskom was requested to assist with restoring supply.

The IEC described the reported incidents as isolated and said they were attended to promptly in collaboration with law enforcement agencies and other stakeholders.

Preliminary figures indicate that about 1.4 million voters cast their ballots in Limpopo, representing a provisional voter turnout of approximately 48%, with results verification continuing.

The Commission urged political parties, candidates and supporters to refrain from spreading unverified information or disinformation about the election results while the verification process continues.

Koketšo Sekhwela 2 minutes read Facebook X LinkedIn Tumblr Pinterest WhatsApp Telegram Share via Email Print Support local journalism Add The Citizen as a preferred source to see more from Review in Google News and Top Stories.