Blank ballots stolen from South African polling station
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Business Day (South Africa)
South Africa’s Electoral Commission has opened an investigation after blank ballots were stolen from a polling station in Kwanyuswa, near Durban, according to Business Day. Police were notified and officials assigned to the station were removed, while the stolen ballots can be identified if they reappear.
The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has opened an investigation into the theft of blank, unused ballot papers from a polling station in KwaZulu-Natal, its deputy chief electoral officer, Masego Sheburi, said on Wednesday. The ballots were stolen from Mnyameni High School in Kwanyuswa, near Botha’s Hill, where they were being stored for validation, according to the IEC.
The polling station, located in eThekwini’s ward 2, had enough materials to continue voting, apart from the voters’ roll. The stolen ballots can be identified through the official stamp on their reverse, which differs from the one used on voting day because it was reserved for special voting days, Masego Sheburi said. The South African Police Service (SAPS) has opened a case and the officials assigned to the station have been removed from their duties.
The IEC also reported delays in opening 50 polling stations in Ndwedwe and three others in Umzumbe, where impassable roads required police and army intervention. KwaZulu-Natal has 5,028 polling stations and 6,022,350 registered voters, according to the IEC.
The incident follows the theft of three ballot boxes from a special voting station in KwaZulu-Natal, reported on 2 November. The commission subsequently tightened ballot security ahead of the 4 November municipal elections.
