Februarie and Another v Electoral Commission of South Africa and Another

The applicants, Ronald Februarie and the Siyathemba Community Movement (SCM), brought an application in the Electoral Court challenging the Independent Electoral Commission’s (IEC) refusal to amend SCM’s registered particulars. SCM, a registered political party in the Northern Cape, was embroiled in an internal leadership dispute since December 2021 between factions led by Mr Februarie and Mr Phillips. Mr Februarie purported to suspend and expel Mr Phillips, the registered party leader and mayoral representative, and requested the IEC to reflect these changes. The IEC refused, citing Regulation 9 of the Regulations for the Registration of Political Parties 2004, which permits only the registered party leader to request amendments. Previous litigation in the Electoral Court (2022) and the Northern Cape High Court (2023) had already determined that Mr Februarie lacked authority to act on behalf of SCM and that Mr Phillips remained the lawful leader. Despite this, the applicants again approached the Electoral Court seeking to compel the IEC to amend SCM’s particulars, declare Regulation 9 unconstitutional, and compel the IEC to initiate new internal party elections.

The application was dismissed. The majority ordered no costs against SCM, with a dissent on costs; ultimately the order was dismissal of the application with no order as to costs.

The case reinforces the limited role of the IEC in internal political party disputes, affirms the constitutionality and purpose of Regulation 9, and underscores the principles of locus standi and res judicata in Electoral Court proceedings. It confirms that internal party leadership disputes must be resolved by courts, not the IEC, and cautions against repetitive litigation in electoral matters.