Elections 2024 | Everything to know: Voter age groups and gender split

Numbers show that the 2024 South African general elections are likely to set a record for the most votes ever cast at the polls come Wednesday, 29 May.

In particular, the age group and gender split for those registered make for fascinating reading.

According to the official IEC website, 27 723 820 voters in South Africa are eligible to mark their ‘X’ in the national and provincial elections, now under 11 weeks away.

This represents the highest total since the dawn of democracy in the country in what will be the seventh elections since 1994.

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It’s important to note that only those who are on the voters roll certified by the IEC (as of 12 March) will be able to vote on 29 May.

“It is impossible to vote in that election if you have not applied for registration before [the close of the voters roll],” confirmed the IEC.

Elections 2024: Marked increase in 18-39 band

As reported by The South African website, in 2024, the provincial breakdown of the registered voters indicates that Gauteng (23.6%) remains as the biggest voting block, followed by KwaZulu-Natal (20.7%) and the Eastern Cape (12.41%).

Rank	Province	Voters	%
1	Gauteng	6 542 033	23.6%
2	KwaZulu-Natal	5 738 272	20.7%
3	Eastern Cape	3 439 325	12.41%
4	Western Cape	3 317 102	11.96%
5	Limpopo	2 779 668	10.03%
6	Mpumalanga	2 025 074	7.3%
7	North West	1 768 580	6.38%
8	Free State	1 456 935	5.26%
9	Northern Cape	656 831	2.37%
TOTAL		27 723 820	100%

There has been a marked increase in the rate of representation by persons in the age group 18-39 years.

This age band accounts for 42.8% – or 11 856 403 – voters on the voters’ roll.

Age group	Male	Female	Total
18-19	250 549	327 247	577 796
20-29	2 007 366	2 453 627	4 460 993
30-39	3 158 772	3 658 842	6 817 614
40-49	2 842 031	3 128 168	5 970 199
50-59	2 048 228	2 494 695	4 542 923
60-69	1 309 136	1 793 464	3 102 600
70-79	576 474	936 314	1 512 788
80+	217 335	521 572	738 907
Total	12 409 891	15 313 929	27 723 820

Interestingly, the trend of there being more females on the voters’ roll continues.

Of the 27 723 820 voters, 15 313 929 are females. This represents over 55%.

Since the voters’ roll was compiled for the first time ahead of the 1999 national and provincial elections, it (the voters’ roll) has shown steady growth of over 35% and contains the highest number of registered voters, recording an increase of 9.6 million voters since the 1999 general elections.

The table below illustrates the rate of growth on the voters’ roll for successive elections:

Elections	Voters
1999	18.17 million
2004	20.67 million
2009	23.18  million
2014	25.39 million
2019	26.76 million
2024	27.79 million

Do you know who you’ll be voting for in the 2024 general elections?

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