Election officials in South Africa rush to register 100,000 prisoners to vote

By MOGOMOTSI MAGOME
Associated Press

PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) — Officials from South Africa’s national electoral commission have visited prisons across the country as part of an ambitious project to register at least 100,000 inmates as voters for this year’s national election. The country’s constitution guarantees every adult citizen the right to vote, meaning there are no restrictions on prisoners taking part in elections. The Electoral Commission of South Africa says it hopes to significantly increase the number of prisoners who take part in the vote. Around 15,000 voted in the last national election in 2019. South Africa has around 157,000 inmates in 240 prisons across the country. The commission officials were to complete the visits to all 240 prisons by Thursday.