ActionSA, the opposition party that introduced the measure, is calling for an oversight body to ensure compliance by polling firms

South African party ActionSA is proposing amendments to the Electoral Commission Act and the Electoral Act to govern the conduct, publication, and dissemination of political opinion polling during or before election periods in line with international best practice.

In its draft Electoral Laws Amendment Bill 2025 introduced by ActionSA MP Lerato Ngobeni to address the existing legal vacuum, the party calls for the establishment of the Office of the Polling Ombud through creating a new oversight body within the Electoral Commission of SA to regulate political opinion polling and exit polling.

It wants the office to be given powers to register polling entities, enforce compliance, issue fines and ensure transparency in political polling activities.

The proposed office will also regulate political opinion polling and exit polling through mandatory registration and information disclosure by polling entities and setting timeframes when polling results can or cannot be published.

The office would also prohibit official printing and publication of a political opinion poll conducted in connection with the election, seven days prior to those elections.

ActionSA's concerns stem from an incident in the run-up to last year's national and provincial elections when a controversial poll was released without disclosing the identity of the commissioning party or the entity that conducted it.

According to the party, the data was anonymously attributed to a media company and it lodged a complaint and the original publisher was found guilty of violating sections of the press code and instructed to publish corrections.

ActionSA believes this type of "push polling" is intended to shape public opinion and is not about genuine data collection and sharing.

"The integrity of electoral democracy relies heavily on citizens' fair, transparent, and informed participation. Political opinion polling plays a significant role in shaping public perceptions, guiding media coverage, influencing campaign strategies and ultimately shaping voting patterns," the party noted.

It added that in the absence of clear and formal regulation to avoid the concealment of any methodological flaws or sponsorships, publication of political opinion polls could result in the dissemination of unverifiable or manipulated polling data becoming tools for misinformation, manipulation and electoral interference, without recourse or sufficient scrutiny.

In the existing laws, the only explicit statutory provision is section 109 of the Electoral Act, which prohibits the publishing of exit poll results during the prescribed voting hours on election day, according to ActionSA.

"This narrow restriction does not apply to the broader and more influential category of pre-election political opinion polling.

South Africa lacks any specific legal provisions governing the conduct, publication, and dissemination of political opinion polling during or before election periods," ActionSA stated.

First published by IOL

(RT.com)