Public Administration N4 – Citizenship and the Right to Vote

Citizenship and the Right to Vote

Citizenship

Aperson may acquire South African citizenship in 3 ways; by birth, descent and naturalisation.

The South African Citizenship Act, 1995 (Act 88 of 1995) was amended by the South African Citizenship Amendment Act, 2010 (Act No. 17 of 2010) which came into operation on 1 January 2013. It brought in updated requirements for applications around Citizenship. 

Citizenship by birth

If you were born in South Africa before October 6, 1995, or were born in South Africa after October 6, 1995, and

• one of your parents was a South African citizen or held a South African permanent residence permit at the time of your birth, or
• you were adopted by a South African citizen, or
• by someone who holds a South African permanent residence permit and
• your birth was registered within 30 days – you automatically qualify for South African citizenship.

Citizenship by descent

If you were born outside of South Africa to a parent who was a South African citizen at the time of your birth or you were adopted by a South African citizen, and your birth was registered, you can apply for citizenship by descent.

Citizenship by naturalisation

You can apply for South African citizenship through naturalisation if you have held a permanent residence permit for at least 5 years if you have married a South African, or you are a minor under 21 years with a permanent residence.

South African citizenship can be taken away if the person also has citizenship of another country. If the person acquires citizenship of another country, he or she will lose their South African citizenship unless they apply to retain it before acquiring foreign citizenship and paying the required fee.

A person can lose South African citizenship by:

• Voluntary Denouncement: Voluntary denouncement occurs when an individual willingly renounces their South African citizenship upon being granted citizenship in another country. It’s important to note that marrying someone with citizenship from another country does not automatically lead to the loss of South African citizenship.
• Abnegation: Abnegation is the act of seeking political asylum in another country, which can result in the loss of South African citizenship.
• Superannuation: South African citizenship may be lost through superannuation if an individual obtains citizenship of another country through registration or naturalization, and then resides outside of South Africa for more than 5 years without obtaining consent from the Minister.
• Dispossession: The Minister has the authority to dispossess an individual of their South African citizenship. This could occur in cases such as fraudulent acquisition of citizenship or prolonged imprisonment in another country exceeding 12 months.

Elections

According to the Constitution, parliamentary elections must be held once every five years. The importance of elections lies in providing the citizens of the country with the opportunity to choose their leaders afresh every five years. If the majority of voters are not satisfied with the current government’s actions, they have the ability to vote the current government out of power.

Franchise Qualifications

Franchise qualifications refer to the conditions that individuals must meet to be eligible to vote. The combined group of people in a country who are allowed to vote is called the electorate.

In South Africa, there is only one voter’s roll/list with provincial and local segments attached. This means that a voter’s name may appear three times, allowing them to vote once for the national election, once for a provincial election, and once for a local election. The law that regulates elections and referenda in South Africa is the Electoral Commission Act, 1996 (Act 51 of 1996).

To be part of the electorate in South Africa, the following qualifications/conditions must be met:

• Persons must be South African citizens.
• Every citizen over the age of 18 is allowed to vote.
• The person must be registered on the voters’ roll.
• The person must possess a legal and eligible voter document (such as an ID, a temporary voting card, etc.).
• A person who is a permanent resident of the country.
• A person who is/was a child of a citizen before the commencement of the new Constitution and who has entered the country to become a permanent resident.
• A person who has been in the country since 31 December 1978.
• A person who is not affected by any of the disqualifications.

Individuals disqualified from voting in South Africa include:

1. Illegal immigrants: People who are not legally recognized residents of the country.
2. Mentally unstable individuals: Those declared unfit to make rational decisions by a court due to mental illness.
3. Institutionalized persons: Individuals residing in institutions such as mental health facilities or prisons.
4. Detainees for drug or alcohol dependency: People under confinement due to substance abuse issues.
5. Prisoners serving sentences for serious crimes: Inmates convicted of major offenses like murder, rape, or robbery without the option of a fine.
6. Registered voters engaging in misconduct: Those who manipulate votes, engage in bribery, impersonation, interfere with voting processes, disobey electoral officers, or spread false information.

Electrol System

The electoral system is a fundamental component of democratic states worldwide, primarily categorized into two types:

Single-Member Constituency-based systems:

In this system, voters cast their ballots in a local area known as a constituency to elect one representative. The candidate who secures the majority votes becomes a Member of Parliament (MP). The party with the most MPs typically forms the government. Under this system, the individual MP, not the political party, holds the parliamentary seat. Voters often prioritize personal trust and familiarity over political affiliation, focusing on the candidate’s attributes rather than their political ideology. MPs can switch parties while in Parliament, a move known as “crossing the floor,” without losing their seat.

There are two variations in this system, the plurality system and the absolute majority system

• Under the plurality system, a country is divided into several districts or constituencies, each electing one representative to the legislative assembly. The voters directly vote for one candidate, and the candidate with majority votes in each constituency is declared the winner and elected. This system is also known as the “first-past-the-post” system in the United States.
• On the other hand, the absolute majority system requires the winning candidate to have 50 percent plus one of all the votes in the constituency. If no candidate obtains an absolute majority, a second election is held between the two leading candidates. The candidate who wins the majority in the second election is declared the winner. This system is used in France to elect the President.

Multi-member proportional representation

Multi-member proportional representation systems are where the electorate in a large area, such as a country or province, votes for political parties based on their ideologies. The parties then select individuals to become MPs after the election. Each party is allocated a number of seats in Parliament proportional to the votes received.

For instance, if a party secures 76% of the electorate’s votes, it will hold 76% of the seats in Parliament. The seats belong to the party, not the individual MPs, hence when the MP switch the party will replace them with another candidate from its list. The candidates are ranked from most popular and important downwards, e.g 1-5. Therefore, when a party wins seats, they are filled starting with candidate number one. If a party wins 5% of the seats, only candidates 1 through 5 will become MPs.

There are two variations of this system: the Party-List system and the Single-Transferable-Vote system.