LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS BY JESSIE TAYLOR
A VOTE FOR TECHNOLOGY:
The new devices shaping the local government elections
T
he Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) has unveiled the new devices that will run this year’s local government election. The new technology will replace machines used by the IEC for the last 20 years. The mobile devices will offer election officials a more efficient way to capture and verify voter data and increase security features to ensure voters can only cast their ballot once, the IEC has said. An integrated management tool The IEC has purchased around 40 000 new voter management devices, at a cost of around R500-million, to offer an integrated and online way to manage the elections. The devices are essentially rugged tablets, which run the four apps needed to ensure the elections take place on 1 November 2021. The tablets will integrate with the IEC’s management system and will replace the Zip Zip machines, which the IEC has used for over 20 years.
16 | Public Sector Leaders | October 2021
The Zip Zip machines have been used to scan people’s identity documents at voting stations since 1998. “The IEC’s approach used to date, that of scanning an identity document and recording the data, is now outdated and inadequate for future purposes. The Electoral Commission intends to harness advances in appropriate technology and apply them in this solution,” said IEC Chief Electoral Officer Sy Mamabolo.
Voter management devices will enable almost instantaneous citizenship verification Mr Mamabolo says the move to a more technologically advanced system will eliminate several steps in the voting process. With the devices, election officials will be able to scan ID barcodes and check addresses in one transaction at the voting station. Mr Mamabolo explained that voter management devices are
