South African Electoral Body Appeals Ruling on Zuma Candidacy

(Bloomberg) -- South Africa’s electoral commission asked the Constitutional Court to provide clarity on a ruling this week that allows former President Jacob Zuma to run for parliament in next month’s elections.

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The appeal by the Electoral Commission of South Africa raises the possibility that Zuma may not be allowed to be a candidate for the legislature in the May 29 vote.

An electoral court on April 9 rejected the commission’s disqualification of Zuma from the list of election candidates. The court has yet to provide a judgment explaining its ruling.

South Africa’s constitution bars anyone sentenced to more than 12 months in jail from being a member of parliament. Zuma was sentenced to 15 months in prison in 2021 after being found guilty of contempt of court.

“The commission wishes to emphasize that this appeal is not intended to involve itself in the political field of play, it is rather to ensure free and fair elections by ensuring that applicable constitutional provisions relating to elections are clearly understood by all role-players and applied evenly,” the electoral commission said in a statement. “We therefore wish for the matter to be determined before the date of the election.”

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