McDonald’s, Panarottis or Roman’s? Kimberley preschoolers hold mock poll

A little voter at St Patrick’s CBC’s ECD Centre in Kimberley drops a “Kiddies Voting Ballot” into the ballot box during the school’s mock election.

Image: Facebook/St Patrick's CBC Kimberley

While South Africans queued to cast their ballots in the local government elections, a group of preschoolers in Kimberley had a different decision to make. McDonald's, Panarottis or Roman's Pizza.

Learners at St Patrick’s CBC’s Early Childhood Development (ECD) Centre held their own voting day, with voting booths, ballot papers and inked fingers. The school shared the story on Facebook on November 6, 2026.

The “parties” on the ballot were Panarottis, McDonald’s and Roman’s Pizza, and the school said, “choosing where to put that little cross was serious business.”

The school said the children took their cue from the adults around them.

“If the grown-ups can vote, so can we,” the post read.

The children marked their “Kiddies Voting Ballots” with pencils and had their fingers inked, just like adult voters did across the country this week.

The school said it could only imagine what the campaign trail looked like, joking that the promises probably included extra cheese, more chips and definitely no veggies.

The school did not announce which party won the most votes. It said only that the counting kept everyone guessing.

IOL Media’s attempts to reach the school for comment were unsuccessful.

The mock poll mirrored the real thing, which drew large crowds. As of Friday, over 75% of Western Cape result slips had been captured and audited.

Political analyst Dr Levy Ndou said the number of parties had spread votes across many of them.

In Cape Town, the focus has already shifted to the next term. Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has outlined priorities including crime prevention, job creation, affordable housing, reliable services and cleaner public spaces.

The school thanked its ECD staff for turning the day into a hands-on lesson in how voting works, from marking a ballot to getting a finger inked.

It said the children enjoyed every minute and that even the youngest voices count.