A South African court has ruled that Jacob Zuma, the former leader, is eligible to run in the election

JOHANNESBURG  — Tuesday’s ruling by South Africa’s Electoral Court overturned an earlier ruling that had prohibited former President Jacob Zuma from entering the polls and allowed him to run for office in the 2018 general election.

The move clears the way for Zuma to run for president on behalf of the newly formed uMkhonto weSizwe Party, or MK, which he joined last year after distancing himself from the African National Congress party, which he had previously led.

On May 29, South Africans will choose 400 representatives to the General Assembly of the nation. The country’s president will be chosen by the members of the newly elected parliament one month from now.

After receiving a protest against Zuma’s candidacy, the Independent Electoral Commission had already declared that he was unable to run for government because of his criminal history.

According to the country’s constitution, a person convicted of a crime and given a sentence of more than a year in prison without the possibility of a fine cannot run for office as a lawmaker.

During his presidency from 2009 to 2018, Zuma disobeyed a court order to appear before a judicial commission investigating charges of corruption in government and state-owned corporations. He was found guilty of this crime and given a 15-month prison sentence in 2021.

But in a succinct ruling made public on Tuesday, the court said that Zuma and his party’s appeal had been successful and that the challenge to his candidacy had been rejected.

The uMkhonto weSizwe Party expressed its gratitude for the court’s ruling, stating that it had always believed the electoral commission erred in barring Zuma.

Its spokesperson, Nhlamulo Ndhlela, stated that Zuma would run for president of the party on the vote, indicating a high probability of winning a legislative seat. Although the MK might garner enough votes to secure seats in parliament, it remains unclear if it will be able to secure the majority in parliament needed to select its candidate for president.

Ndhlela remarked, “We are thrilled with the court’s decision because we have always maintained that the rights of President Zuma and the MK Party must be respected.” “Basically, this means that he will run for president and join Parliament following the elections.”