South Africans in the Kingdom voted in their country’s fifth national democratic elections here on Wednesday, the first time that citizens living abroad could do so.

The country’s consulate arranged for the voting to take place at its premises in Jeddah.

All South Africans abroad who had registered previously were allowed to cast their ballots on April 30, provided they had their passports and identity documents.

Murray Sterley, vice consul in Jeddah, said that apart from a few minor problems, the day was a success for all stations abroad.

He said voter registration and turnout were lower-than-expected.

“In Jeddah we had 145 registrations and 99 ballots were cast. This is the first time that South Africans abroad have been allowed to vote, through an initial online registration (if they had previously voted), and then a special voting day when individuals physically came to the consulate to cast their ballots.”

Representatives from the ruling African National Congress and the opposition Democratic Alliance were present as observers, he said.

He said that with just over 25 million registered voters, representing over 80 percent of eligible voters, South Africa’s fifth national elections yielded the highest voter registration since 1994. This is also the first election in which those born after 1994, known as “born-frees” were eligible to vote.

He said South Africans are proud of their democracy and constitution, which enshrines democratic principles and human rights.