JOHANNESBURG, March 12 (Xinhua) -- A total of 22 South African political parties had paid their deposits and 12 had submitted candidate lists on Tuesday morning as they rush to beat the Wednesday deadline, said South Africa's Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).
South Africa will hold elections on May 8. The political parties are required to register, pay deposits and submit candidate lists before 5 p.m. local time this Wednesday.
IEC spokesperson Kate Bapela said, till 9 a.m. on Tuesday morning, 22 political parties had paid deposits and 12 had submitted candidate lists for the elections. Approximately 34 parties had indicated their intention of contesting.
"South Africa has seen a steady increase in the number of political parties contesting national elections since 1999," she said.
In 1999, a total of 16 political parties contested the national ballot and 13 won representation in Parliament.
