Election day warning: Extreme heat could affect millions of SA voters
· Citizen
The government has warned that millions of South Africans could face extremely high temperatures and prolonged queues when they head to voting stations for the 4 November local government elections.
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The warning came after the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on Local Government Elections met on Friday to assess preparations for the elections and the country’s expected summer weather conditions.
Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa convened the fortnightly meeting on 16 October, with the committee saying preparations for the elections remained on track.
However, the IMC raised concerns about the impact of expected El Niño conditions, which could bring above-normal temperatures and below-normal rainfall across large parts of the country.
Millions could stand in queues
The committee said the combination of extreme heat and long queues could pose a serious risk to voters and election officials on polling day.
“On the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events, coupled with the anticipated El Niño conditions, the IMC highlighted the urgent need to plan adequately ahead of the local government elections as millions of voters will be standing on long lines for the whole day under extremely high temperatures,” the ministry said.
The government urged communities and authorities to prepare for the conditions rather than wait for emergencies to develop.
“With these El Niño conditions already with us, we need to shift from reactive disaster response towards proactive disaster risk reduction (DRR), prevention, mitigation and preparedness,” the IMC said.
The committee warned that the expected weather would not be uniform across the country.
A strong El Niño is expected to dominate the summer season, with the main concerns being below-normal rainfall and above-normal temperatures in most parts of South Africa.
The conditions could increase the risk of drought, water shortages, agricultural losses and heat-related health impacts, while putting additional pressure on essential services.
Floods and thunderstorms still possible
Despite the broader dry and hot outlook, the government cautioned that parts of the country could still experience intense rainfall, flash floods and severe thunderstorms.
“The rainfall outlook for 26 October to 2 November 2026 indicates that spring rainfall may persist over the eastern half of the country, including the eastern Free State, Eastern Cape, North West, western Limpopo, the Mpumalanga Highveld, Gauteng and the coastal areas of the Western Cape,” it noted.
The South African Weather Service, working with the National Disaster Management Centre and others, will continue monitoring conditions and issuing updated forecasts and advisories.
The IMC urged municipalities and disaster management structures to ensure communities receive timely and localised weather warnings.
Election preparations continue
The weather warning comes as the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) races towards Election Day, 4 November 2026, with more than 2.6 million special vote applications approved.
The IEC received a record 2 655 067 special vote applications before applications closed on 12 October, a 131% increase from 2021.
The commission has also recruited 188 500 electoral staff, while 23 696 voting stations have been secured nationwide.
The IMC said it remained confident in the IEC’s ability to manage the election independently and oversee a credible electoral process.
The committee also noted that security preparations are underway through the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (NatJoints), with plans covering the pre-election, election-day and post-election phases.
“Protecting lives, livelihoods, critical infrastructure and essential services must remain a strategic priority across all spheres of government,” the IMC said.