South African court denies party extension to submit candidate nominations
The Electoral Court in Bloemfontein, South Africa, dismissed an urgent application by the United Democratic Front Party, which sought permission to submit candidate nominations in electoral districts after the deadline. The case concerns local elections scheduled for November 4, 2026, Daily Maverick reports.
Deadline for submitting nominations
The election timetable stipulated that by 17:00 on August 28, registered parties had to submit party lists of candidates, while parties and independent candidates had to submit nominations to participate in constituency elections. By the same deadline, the required deposits had to be paid and supporting documents submitted.
The United Democratic Front Party stated that its registration with the Electoral Commission was completed only on August 24. According to the party, this effectively left it four days to organize the nomination of candidates.
The party planned to participate in the elections in approximately 110 wards in the Cape Town metropolitan area. It initially asked for permission to submit nominations after the deadline. Later, the party narrowed its request: it wanted to nominate interim candidates in some or all of those wards and replace them with other candidates by September 4.
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The court's position
The Electoral Commission opposed the application, noting that the law permits the election timetable to be changed only generally, through the publication of a notice in the government gazette, and only if this is necessary to hold free and fair elections. In the commission's view, it is not authorized to make an exception for one party when the deadline remains binding on other participants.
The court agreed with this position. The ruling states that the commission has no authority to accept late nominations. The mechanism for replacing candidates may be used only for nominations that were submitted on time.
The court also stressed that the Electoral Commission should not make ad hoc decisions concerning parties or candidates that failed to comply with legal requirements or the election timetable. The party's application was dismissed without an order as to costs.
