An enduring vote of confidence: public trust in the Electoral Commission

Abstract

The Electoral Commission of South Africa has overseen successful national and provincial elections and five municipal elections to date. Apart from administrative efficiency, the extent to which the public continues to express confidence in the Electoral Commission is instrumental to the overall credibility of elections and to democratic legitimacy more broadly and it is therefore important to constantly monitor the general population's attitudes towards the election management body. In this article, Benjamin Roberts, Steven Gordon and Jare Struwig examine and discuss the views of South Africans towards the Commission and how this has changed over time.