On 17 April 2023, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the Electoral Amendment Bill into law. This came after waiting two months for the president to enact the law (the Bill was referred to the president after parliamentary process was finalized on 23 February 2023), following many delays with the process of amending the law. The signing of the Electoral Amendment Bill into law also came after mounting pressure from civil society organizations calling on the president not to sign the Bill because it is flawed. The Bill now the Electoral Law is flawed because it does not provide for reasonable inclusion of independent candidates in the new electoral system.
Following extensive advice to Parliament over a period of over two years to ensure that it passes a Bill that is constitutionally sound, Parliament still passed a defective bill. The onus was then on the President to enact the Bill into law, of course, after taking into consideration the law-making process. We therefore had expectation for the President to refer the Bill back to Parliament for review or advice or to use his executive power and not sign. Regardless, the President signed a flawed Bill into law sparking legal challenges against the Electoral Law. MVC will not be partaking in the legal challenges against the new Electoral Law. This position paper provides for MVC’s position on legal challenges on the Electoral Law and Electoral Reform going forward.
Click on the link below to download the pdf report.
MVC’s position on legal challenges against the Electoral Law and Electoral Reform going Foward
