By Sihle Mavuso
The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) on Friday warned that voter confidence in democracy has fallen sharply in KwaZulu-Natal, after a new HSRC survey found rising political disengagement, economic dissatisfaction, and weakening trust in electoral institutions.
The findings form part of the IEC-commissioned Voter Participation Survey, conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council, and the KZN-focused report titled What is happening in KwaZulu-Natal? Electoral Integrity, Civic Duty and Disillusionment.
IEC chairperson Mosotho Moepya said the survey provided the commission with an important barometer of public sentiment ahead of the forthcoming local government elections.
The findings were presented during a press conference in Durban after a week-long IEC visit to KwaZulu-Natal, where commissioners met stakeholders including Zulu King Misuzulu kaZwelithini, Premier Thami Ntuli and political parties including the ANC, IFP, National Freedom Party and EFF.
Moepya said meetings with the MK Party and the DA would be held at a later stage after the two parties requested postponements.
He said the findings showed that support for democracy as the preferred political system was no longer held by a majority of adults in KwaZulu-Natal, making it necessary for the commission to engage stakeholders in the province and seek lasting solutions.
“The study highlights declining trust in key political institutions, growing political disengagement, and rising voter disillusionment.
“KZN is among the provinces recording the sharpest decline in confidence in democracy. These trends underscore why the commission’s presence in the province this week has been both necessary and urgent,” Moepya said.
The report found that support for democracy as the preferred political system had fallen to 43% in KwaZulu-Natal, from 65% in 2015.
It also found that satisfaction with how democracy was working in the province had dropped severely, from 54% in 2004 to just 6% in 2025, compared with a national average of 17%.
Moepya said most adults still supported democratic values, but many felt democracy was not working well in practice.
“Economic dissatisfaction is very high in the province, with 88% unhappy about current conditions. The same proportion expect the economy to worsen in the next five years. 60% say life in their communities has worsened over the last five years,” he said.
He said the IEC had also not been spared, with those surveyed in the province expressing low confidence in the commission.
“Trust levels in the Electoral Commission have not been spared. On this metric, it is lowest in KwaZulu-Natal at 20%. The national average being 32%. There is a clear electoral divide with persons who voted in elections assessing the Electoral Commission more favorable than those who did not vote.”
Moepya said the commission was working to address concerns raised by political parties during the 2024 national and provincial elections, as it anticipated a difficult election period ahead.
“On its part, the commission reassured stakeholders that challenges experienced in the 2024 elections have or are in the process of being remedied.
“The commission has taken concrete steps to address concerns arising from the 2024 elections, including measures to reduce long queues, improvements to the Voters’ Roll App and the results leader board in the results centres, and subjecting the Voter Management Device to rigorous stress testing and independent audit to ensure its reliability and integrity,” he added.
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