President signs electoral law amendment

The signing into law of the Electoral Laws Amendment Bill by President Cyril Ramaphosa will clamp down on poor behaviour by parties in the polls in May, notes a Cape Argus report. The Bill will, among other things, prevent the use of public funds in parties’ campaigns. The Bill also seeks to prevent any challenge to the elections results based on the absence of addresses in the voters roll. The commission has sought an extension to verify more addresses in the voters roll. A few weeks ago, Ramaphosa signed into law another important piece of legislation – the Political Party Funding Bill – which will come into effect in April. This Bill seeks to limit party funding and forces parties to disclose their funders, and will start operating when the parties kick off their election drives. The Electoral Laws Bill has been lauded by opposition parties as an important Bill to prevent the abuse of state resources by the ruling party.