The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) received more than half a million SMSs during the voter registration weekend in November, an official said on Friday.

Also, its website received 623 109 hits between Friday, 7 November and Sunday, 9 November, said IEC spokesperson Kate Bapela.

She said the number of people who sent SMSs to check if they were registered was 547 301, peaking at 212 316 on the Sunday.

The website received 139 599 hits on its home page and 438 332 people clicked on the section "Am I registered?" while more than 45 000 used the website to enquire where to register.

Bapela said the IEC was aware of the problem that its website was not cross-browser compatible which made it inaccessible to some users.

"The IEC is working on a solution," she said.

Sapa