Rustenburg residents eagerly await vote results

Anxiety sets in as Rustenburg residents wait anxiously to see who will win the hotly contested municipality, which includes Marikana. (VIDEO)

Rustenburg - As voting stations closed in Rustenburg in the North West, excitement from voters and political parties was replaced by anxiety over the results of municipal elections.

At least 44 wards are up for grabs in the Rustenburg municipality which is a battleground between mainly the ANC, EFF, DA and a group of community based independent candidates.

In the main news the results of Ward 31, which includes Marikana - an area of political significance - will be closely watched after the ANC's massive drop in support here in the 2014 national and provincial elections.

The ANC garnered 37% of votes in the ward while the EFF got 30% and the UDM received 25% in 2014.

The ANC's decline was dramatic, considering that the party had won 92% of the votes received in the 2011 elections. That kind of dominance is definitely not on the cards this time. The collapse of the ANC's support base followed the killing by the police of 34 striking mine workers in 2012.

According to the IEC, voting went off without major glitches in the North West province.

However there were a few reported incidents that marred the start of voting in the province including the death of EFF candidate Francis Matlabe in Mamusa local municipality in Scweizer-Reneke.

In Tlokwe, independent candidate David Kham said he had lodged complaints with the IEC for the removal of an ANC candidate in one ward who allegedly handing out party T-shirts at the polling station.

In some areas around Rustenburg, there were reported delays of up to two hours with the opening of the voting stations because of the late arrival of ballot papers.

Marikana resident Boitshoko Seme who arrived at the voting station in Wonderkop just an hour before it was to close said he was apprehensive about the results.

“I wish I could leave here knowing what's the verdict. It's nail biting time now,” he said. “I am really eager to know how the ANC is going to fare in this election here.”

Another, Absalom Ndlovu, said he preferred to know the results once all of them have been counted. “I won't bother listen to the initial results as they come in, I want the full picture because I don't want to get excited prematurely,” he said.

Election Bureau