Chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission in South Africa Mosotho Moepya says the release of a special issue of the Journal of African Elections comes at a critical moment, as the country prepares for the November local government polls.

The publication follows a June 2025 symposium on political party funding. Moepya says the journal provides a vital platform to reflect on safeguarding democracy with a sharp focus on the ethical use of financial resources.

“The contribution of this special edition offer timely critics of our current regime, particularly in the light of the Electoral Matters Amendment Act and the evolving jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court. We must ask ourselves, is our transparency meaningful or merely procedural? This is a question that must never escape us. We are better off when those with the means to sustain democracy use their financial resources ethically,” says Moepya.

–SABC–