Spotlight: Helping the IEC protect South Africa’s local elections

Election authorities have adopted an ISS protest and violence monitoring tool ahead of local government polls in November.

Published on 13 October 2026 in Impact

The open-source Institute for Security Studies (ISS) Protest and Public Violence Monitor is part of the ISS Crime Hub. It has mapped all forms of protest since 2013, using data from more than 100 news sources, trade unions, political parties and universities.

An ISS data-sharing partnership with South Africa’s Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) is now strengthening the commission’s capacity to record election-related protests and violence in real time. It uses the unique ISS database and can capture and assess incidents during campaigning, voter registration or voting scheduled for 4 November.

‘Having access to historic patterns of unrest, combined with live reporting from protest hot spots, will help the IEC to ensure the smooth running of elections, from registration to public participation in the vote,’ says Lizette Lancaster, Head of the Justice and Violence Prevention programme at the ISS.

‘By sharing information and analysis of protests, disruption of electoral processes and public violence, we are helping to improve the IEC’s understanding of the dynamics of incidents that could interfere with the polls,’ says Lancaster.

ISS Consultant Lindelani Mulaudzi is working with IEC conflict resolution coordinators from all nine provinces

ISS Consultant Lindelani Mulaudzi is supporting the IEC as a national conflict resolution coordinator, working with its provincial and district conflict resolution coordinators from eight metros, 44 districts and 205 municipalities in all nine provinces. The role of these coordinators is to detect, mediate and resolve disputes, monitor early warning signs and support peaceful and legal campaigning.

They are trained in the use of the monitoring tool, early risk detection and rapid interventions to protect electoral legitimacy. The coordinators learn to map risk areas and identify political tensions, monitor warning signs, encourage parties to commit to non-violence and legal campaigning and build relationships with traditional leaders, communities, policing forums and other stakeholders.

They were trained to recognise potential triggers of unrest, including political party rivalry, the rapid spread of misinformation, disputes over candidates or election results, community frustrations over service delivery, and delays at polling stations.

‘Recognising the causes of violence is the most powerful tool to prevent conflict,’ says Lindelani. ‘ISS experience of protest and elections, and its data collection and analysis capacity combined with technical training, is helping to protect the integrity and security of South African polls.’

For more information, contact:

Lizette Lancaster, ISS: [email protected]