IEC-file photo
The IEC's Vice-Chairperson, Janet Love says, despite the overwhelmingly smooth running of by-elections across the country on Wednesday, the commission is concerned over voting disruptions in two wards.
Service delivery protestors disrupted by-elections at Naledi in Soweto and at Amahlathi Municipality in the Eastern Cape.
Love says the commission has called on the police to take decisive action against anyone whose actions impeded the holding of free and fair elections.
The by-elections took place in 95 wards across 55 municipalities in all nine provinces.
The commission revealed the by-elections had an average turnout of 37.8% and that the ANC retained 64 wards, lost two wards and won six new wards.
It says the DA retained 14 wards, lost nine and won two new ones.
In the Eastern Cape, the ANC retained 18 of the 19 wards that were contested across the province but lost one ward, in the
Walter Sisulu Municipal region, to the Democratic Alliance.
The IEC says the highest voter turnout of 75.29 % was in the Eastern Cape, at Port St Johns municipality.
