South Africa’s Electoral Commission (IEC) has officially launched its National Results Operations Centre (ROC) at the Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand, Gauteng, as preparations intensify for the 2026 Local Government Elections scheduled for November 4.
The centre will serve as the country’s main operational hub for receiving, capturing, verifying, collating and announcing election results from approximately 23,000 voting stations nationwide. It will also provide a central platform for monitoring election progress, voter turnout and the performance of political parties and independent candidates.
IEC Chief Electoral Officer Sy Mamabolo said the centre represents the commission’s commitment to electoral transparency, integrity and technological readiness. Political parties, independent candidates, election observers and members of the media will have access to election information and results updates throughout the process.
The IEC has also established provincial results operations centres across all nine provinces to support the national structure and strengthen coordination during the elections.
A key priority for the commission is ensuring the reliability and security of its results management system. Following concerns over a technical glitch during the 2024 national elections, which caused the results leaderboard to go blank for approximately two hours, the IEC has introduced additional technical improvements.
Mamabolo confirmed that the results system had undergone independent testing and auditing, with identified weaknesses addressed. Five political parties also participated in a review of the system between October 8 and 12, with no material findings reported.
For the 2026 elections, the commission has introduced a virtual Results Operations Centre, allowing political party representatives and other authorised stakeholders to access election results and related reports remotely. Improvements have also been made to the transmission and display of results across the IEC’s website, mobile application and public information platforms.
The elections will see approximately 29.2 million registered voters participating in choosing leadership across South Africa’s 257 municipalities. Special voting is scheduled for November 2 and 3, ahead of the nationwide voting day on November 4.
The launch of the National Results Operations Centre marks a significant milestone in the IEC’s preparations, as the commission seeks to strengthen public confidence and ensure a transparent, credible and efficient electoral process.
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