From vote-rigging claims to system glitch: MK party narrows election challenge

A report by Nonkululeko Njilo and Mabatho Marakalla on the Electoral Court hearing of 17 June 2026, at which the uMkhonto weSizwe party argued a narrowed case: rather than seeking to invalidate the 2024 result outright, it now contends that the Electoral Commission's decision to optimise its live results system during counting, which produced a roughly two-hour interruption of the public results display, was unjustified interference that prevented the election from being free and fair. The Electoral Commission asked for the application to be dismissed as an abuse of judicial resources and maintained that the interruption affected only the public-facing reporting website, not vote capturing or verification. Judgment was reserved.