The South African Police Service (SAPS) has identified 331 high-risk voting stations across the country ahead of the 4 November local government elections, with more than half of them reported to be in KwaZulu-Natal.
SAPS said it is operationally ready to secure the polls, according to reports on Friday. Its own risk assessments flagged possible flashpoints linked to service delivery protests, community unrest and other security incidents.
What we know
The figure of 331 high-risk voting stations comes from SAPS risk assessments, as reported on Friday 30 October. More than half of the stations are said to be in KwaZulu-Natal, although we have not seen an exact provincial count.
Police said the flagged risks include service delivery protests, community unrest and other security incidents. Special votes are cast on 2 and 3 November, and Election Day is 4 November.
Context
Earlier this week, President Cyril Ramaphosa approved the deployment of 510 soldiers in KwaZulu-Natal until 30 November. Research reported this week counted 43 people killed in political attacks, and Ramaphosa condemned the election-related killings.
What we do not yet know
We do not yet know how many of the 331 stations are in KwaZulu-Natal, which other provinces are affected, or which stations are on the list. It is also unclear how police rated a station as high-risk and what extra deployments are planned. Reports describe the sites variously as voting stations and voting zones, and we have not yet seen the SAPS statement itself, so the figure needs a second confirmation.
