Ongoing

  1. ElectionsHot
  2. US mid-termsHeating up
  3. AICooling
NewsbriefSouth Africa, briefly.
JoburgJHB29°16°CTCT30°17°PretoriaPTA31°17°DurbanDBN27°64%

Police name 331 high-risk voting stations ahead of elections

Published

Ongoing: Elections Hot

National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola said in Durban that the police service is operationally ready for the local government elections. Most of the high-risk stations are in KwaZulu-Natal, and Masemola said police will not tolerate political violence.

KwaZulu-Natal has 165 of the high-risk stations, the most of any province. Of these, 124 are in the eThekwini District. Gauteng has 119, including 75 in the Johannesburg district.

The Western Cape has 33, all in the City of Cape Town. Mpumalanga has 11. The Eastern Cape has three, all in the OR Tambo District.

Masemola said police have increased deployments, with specialised units on standby. He said the South African National Defence Force and the State Security Agency also support election security.

Masemola said two people were attacked and killed in connection with violent marches around Durban. He said 16 vehicles were burnt or damaged. The police service has a court application on marches in KwaZulu-Natal and awaits the court's decision.

Masemola said the application does not aim to stop lawful marches or the right to protest. He said it aims to ensure that people follow the law.

Key facts

Who
Fannie Masemola (National police commissioner); Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime (publisher of a recent report recording 43 murders between January and…); South African Police Service (police service leading election security); Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa (election management body that SAPS will work with)
What
Masemola outlined police election security planning, identifying 331 voting stations nationally in areas with potential instability, most in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng. He also said SAPS has a court application seeking an interim order on marches in KwaZulu-Natal, and that the police are awaiting the court's decision.
When
30 October 2026
Where
KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Western Cape
Status
Reported

Related stories

Elections Hot

What you need to know

Voting in the 2026 Local Government Elections is under way at 23,696 stations, and the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) reported a smooth start on 4 November. Stations opened at 7am and close at 9pm, and by 10am preliminary figures showed 3,523,691 voters had cast ballots.

There were problems: unused ballot papers were stolen from Mnyameni Secondary School near Durban, police opened a case, and the IEC relieved the station staff of duty. Some voters in Tshwane said they were turned away for wearing party shirts, but the IEC denied this and said only mayoral candidates' entourages were barred.

ANC chairperson Gwede Mantashe told members not to query the results or discredit the IEC, while the IEC said false online claims show routine procedures as fraud.

  1. IEC dismisses MK Party worry about dead people on voters' roll
  2. IEC says local election voting went largely smoothly
  3. IEC says about 12 million had voted by 5pm

See every update

US mid-terms Heating up

What you need to know

Democrats won back both the US House and Senate in the midterm elections held on 3 November, according to media projections. Exit polls showed voters were angry about high prices and the direction of the country, and rebuked President Donald Trump.

Before the vote, US forces struck targets on Qeshm Island in Iran, while Republicans struggled to defend the war against Iran on the campaign trail. Iranian officials said US voters rejected the war, and Tehran stayed on high alert for possible new US strikes.

Markets reacted, with the dollar hitting a one-month low and the rand firming to around R16.55, as analysts pointed to fears of gridlock in Washington.

  1. Iran welcomes Democratic wins in US midterm elections
  2. Democrats win US Congress in midterm vote, projections show
  3. Ramaphosa wants US trade deal after AGOA suspension

See every update

AI Cooling

What you need to know

Nvidia has told its cloud computing clients to sell at least 51% of their services to non-Chinese companies, according to five people with knowledge of the matter. Anthropic said it has committed to spend close to $900bn on AI infrastructure, and that its computing costs are rising faster than its revenues.

Elsewhere, reports from unnamed sources say OpenAI's latest funding round is falling short of expectations, and a judge let the NAACP pollution case against xAI proceed. In South Africa, the VAST AI investment scheme went offline on 30 October after withdrawals marked approved did not arrive, according to a news investigation.

  1. Accenture faces accusations over AI report with false citations
  2. CrowdStrike to buy two AI security startups
  3. Google lets schools turn off AI tools but limits Search

See every update