As the votes continue to be counted, the hopes and voices of ordinary South Africans are condensing into a call for change.
On Wednesday, South Africans took to the polls to choose the political parties that they would like to lead the seventh administration. According to the IEC, more than 27-million people were registered to vote but those who went to vote numbered just over 8-million. About 15-million of the voting population are women. In terms of age group, voter registration is highest among those who are 30 to 39 years old, numbering almost 7-million.
On election day, Elitsha reporters mainly in the metropolitan centres spoke to voters about what kind of change they would like the new administration to prioritise: jobs for young people, crime reduction and much needed services top the list.
In Cape Town
Residents of the most populous areas of the Western Cape say they hope that the elections and whoever takes power afterwards will deal with the issues of crime and youth unemployment, and deliver quality social services.
According to the Independent Electoral Commission, there are over 3.7-million voters registered at 1,572 voting stations in the Western Cape, most of them in the City of Cape Town. The majority of registered voters in the province are people between 40 and 49 years of age, mostly women.
Gqeberha and East London
Many Eastern Cape voters were frustrated with the manner in which the general elections kicked off on Monday, 27 May. They bemoaned failures by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) to organise the voting process efficiently.
Topping their grievances was the late arrival of ballot papers, the malfunctioning of voting verification devices and having the ballot papers not in an alphabetical order. Voters were frustrated by the long queues, and the late opening of voting stations that forced them to wait under a scorching sun.
The voting process in East London’s Mdantsane township went smoothly, despite delays at some stations. Both young and elderly people came out in numbers. Before 10 a.m., elderly people at Mdantsane’s Unit 7 Community Hall were already standing in long queues with some seated.
Johannesburg and Pretoria
Voters in Soweto of various party affiliations, young and old, expressed their desire for change. They yearn for the South Africa promised in 1994.
Further north, residents of Mamelodi East in Tshwane heeded the call to vote, wanting jobs for the youth.
Vhembe, Limpopo
Having waited for years to cast their votes, young and elderly persons in Vhembe district, Limpopo, braced the morning cold and queued at their local IEC voting stations to vote for their favoured political parties. The voters Elitsha spoke to voiced their concerns on several service delivery issues, including a lack of water provision, the poor condition of roads, and the shortage of jobs.
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