The IEC recorded more than 2.9 million voter registrations during its first voter registration weekend ahead of the local government elections scheduled for 4 November.
Chief Electoral Officer Sy Mamabolo says the figure represents a significant increase from the 1.7 million recorded during the voter registration process in 2021. He attributed the growth in registrations to several factors, including improvements in the commission’s voter registration systems.
“The Commission has achieved two significant objectives through this voter registration weekend. Firstly, the continued growth of the voters’ roll and secondly, improved registration yield from young persons. Over the two days of registration, the Commission recorded 2.9 million registration transactions. This is an improvement from the 1.7 million transactions recorded during the voter registration weekend for the comparable election in 2021.”
VOTER REGISTRATION | Electoral Commission CEO Sy Mamabolo says 2.9 million registration transactions were recorded over the weekend, up from 1.7 million in 2021. pic.twitter.com/hJK0LG6NxO
VIDEO | IEC briefing on voter registration weekend:
The IEC has also announced that its online voter registration portal, very popular with the youth, is now zero-rated. This allows all eligible South Africans to register, update their details, and verify their registration information without incurring data charges.
The Electoral Commission says it is encouraged by the positive response of the youth to its voter registration weekend.
“Young people in the age cohort 16 to 29 account for 785 000 of total registration activity which represents 27% of the 2.9 million transactions recorded. 59% of this are female while 41% are male. Young persons also dominated in the new registration category. Of the total new registrations which is 477 000. 80% of all new registrations recorded over the weekend are young persons in the age category 16 to 29,” says Mamabolo.
<img src="https://www.mtlblog.com/media-library/canadian-prime-minister-justin-trudeau.jpg?id=55479616&width=1200&height=800&coordinates=0%2C0%2C0%2C1"/><br/><br/><p><a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/tag/justin-trudeau" target="_blank">Justin Trudeau</a> has resigned as prime minister and leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, and Canadians have a lot of questions.</p><p><a href="https://www.narcity.com/justin-trudeau-resigns-canada-prime-minister" target="_blank">Trudeau announced his resignation</a> in a press conference outside Rideau Cottage on Monday morning, stating that "Canadians deserve a real choice in the next election."</p><p>Pressure on the Canadian PM to step down has been mounting recently, fuelled by political turmoil, dipping approval ratings and a growing cost-of-living crisis. <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-trudeau-expected-to-announce-resignation-before-national-caucus/" target="_blank">The Globe and Mail reported on Sunday</a> that sources said Trudeau would resign this week ahead of a caucus meeting on Wednesday.</p><p>But what does Trudeau's resignation mean for Canada And who will step up to lead the Liberals? Let's break it down.</p><h3>What happens after Trudeau resigns?</h3><br/><p>In his press conference on Monday, Trudeau said that he would step down as Liberal Party leader and prime minister "after the party selects its next leader through a robust nationwide competitive process."</p><p>"Last night, I asked the president of the Liberal Party to begin that process," the PM confirmed</p><p>According to the <a href="https://www.liberal.ca/legacy-uploads/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/constitution-en.pdf" target="_blank">Liberal Party's constitution</a>, in the event of a leadership contest, the party's national executive must meet within 27 days to set the rules. This could delay picking a permanent leader for months, which would get complicated if there's a sudden election.</p><p>Trudeau also announced that the Governor General had granted his request to prorogue Parliament until March 24, to give his party time to hold a leadership contest.</p><h3>What is proroguing Parliament?</h3><br/><p>Proroguing Parliament is basically hitting the pause button on all legislative business in Canada. When Parliament is prorogued, everything comes to a halt — any bills that haven't been finalized are scrapped, committees stop meeting and no new debates or votes can happen.</p><p>Most importantly for the Liberals, though, the current government stays in power during this time — meaning the opposition can't call a non-confidence vote to trigger an election, giving the Liberals a bit of time to find Trudeau's replacement.</p><p>When asked why he made the decision to prorogue, Trudeau said that Parliament had been "entirely seized" by "a total lack of productivity over the past few months." </p><p>"It's time for a reset," he said. "It's time for the temperature to come down, for people to have a fresh start in Parliament to be able to navigate through these complex times, both domestically and internationally."</p><h3>Who could replace Trudeau?</h3><br/><p>While there's no official word on who's in the running yet, a few names are already being tossed around, including former central banker Mark Carney, who's seen as a heavy hitter thanks to his financial expertise.</p><p>Chrystia Freeland, the former finance minister and deputy prime minister who <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/chrystia-freeland-resigns-open-letter-justin-trudeau" target="_blank">resigned last month in an explosive open letter to Trudeau</a>, is also a top contender.</p><p>Then there's current Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, whom the Globe reports has already been in discussions with Trudeau about stepping in as interim leader.</p><p>Whoever gets the top job next, the stakes are high. The next leader won't just be inheriting Trudeau's role — they'll also be gearing up for a federal election in 2025.</p><h3>Why is Trudeau resigning?</h3><br/><p>It's been a tough few years for the prime minister. From internal party dissent to public backlash over inflation and housing affordability, Trudeau's popularity has taken a hit. High-profile exits, like Freeland's resignation last month, have only added fuel to the fire.</p><p>Even his relationship with the NDP, a key ally in his minority government, has soured. <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/jagmeet-singh-calls-for-justin-trudeau-resignation" target="_blank">NDP leader Jagmeet Singh</a> recently joined the growing list of politicians from all sides of the aisle calling for Trudeau's resignation and <a href="https://www.ndp.ca/news/jagmeet-singhs-letter-canadians" target="_blank">stated the party's intent to call a non-confidence vote</a> early this year.</p><p>Meanwhile, <a href="https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/elections/poll-tracker/canada/" target="_blank">recent polls show</a> that under Trudeau, Liberal support has slipped to 20%, while the Conservatives are sitting comfortably at 44%.</p><p><em>This story was originally published on <a href="https://www.narcity.com/justin-trudeau-resignation-what-happens-next" target="_blank">Narcity</a>.</em><br/></p>
Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed. (File Photo) Sodiq Adelakun/Channels TV The Minister of Information, Mr Lai Mohammed has said that no ransom…
