Attention is now focused on whether South Africa's Chief Justice Raymond Zondo will announce a date for the first sitting of Parliament following the May 2024 election results.
This came after the IEC formally handed over the list of National Assembly and State Assembly members to the Chief Justice who in turn handed it over to National Assembly Speaker Sholile George.
The handover of the list of elected representatives by the IEC will pave the way for the swearing-in of state assembly members, members of the National Assembly and more importantly, the election of a President to lead a unity government in a changing political landscape.
However, the Chief Justice is yet to announce a date.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the IEC for being able to prepare this list so quickly after the results were announced, which I think is very important. As I said, once this step has been taken, the next step will be to announce the dates for the first sitting of Parliament, which as you know will be announced by the Chief Justice. I think it will be announced fairly soon. I'm not going to say it will be this afternoon. I'm not going to say it will be tomorrow, but it will be announced quite soon,” Zondo said.
Video: Electoral Commission roll handover – The Electoral Commission hands over the list of National Assembly and State Legislative Assembly members to Chief Justice Zondo
The list includes 174 women and 226 men, meaning that 56.5% of elected representatives are men and 43.5% are women, with the latter proportion decreasing slightly.
“Their ages range from 20 to 79 years old. The breakdown is as follows: 12 between 20 and 29 years old, 67 between 30 and 39 years old, 110 between 40 and 49 years old, 110 between 50 and 59 years old, 90 between 60 and 69 years old and 11 aged 70 and above,” said IEC chairperson Mosotho Moepiya.
The list was handed over to the Chief Commissioner of Parliament, who highlighted to the nation the important milestone in the journey of our democracy and the responsibilities that come with this assignment.
“Your decisions determine who represents you in parliament and it is our responsibility to ensure that the new parliament carries your aspirations and hopes for a better future,” said parliament secretary Sholile George.
Meanwhile, coalition talks are still ongoing as the parties need to win seats within 14 days of the election results being announced.
Video: IEC list handover – Zondo receives list of MPs and state legislators, date for first Parliamentary sitting yet to be decided