South Africa Elections 2024 Discussion Thread

[The Bald Eagle]

Early results have been announced from what is seen as South Africa's most closely fought elections since the African National Congress (ANC) came to power 30 years ago

With results from around 27% voting districts counted so far, the ANC is leading with 43%, followed by the Democratic Alliance (DA) with 25%.

The radical Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has about 9%, while the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK Party) of former President Jacob Zuma is on around 8%.

Final results are expected over the weekend.

The initial results suggest the ANC will lose its parliamentary majority for the first time since Nelson Mandela led the party to victory following the end of the racist system of apartheid in 1994.

Many voters blame the ANC for the high levels of corruption, crime and unemployment in the country. The respected Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the News24 website have projected that the party's final vote could be around 42%, a big drop from the 57% it obtained in the 2019 election.

This would force it go into a coalition with one or more of the other parties in order to form a majority in parliament.
The DA has liberal economic policies, while both the EFF and MK favour more state intervention and nationalisation, so the choice of partner would make a huge difference to South Africa's future direction.

It is unclear whether President Cyril Ramaphosa will remain in power, as he could come under pressure from the ANC to resign if the party gets less than 45% of the final vote, said Prof William Gumede, chairman of the non-profit Democracy Works Foundation.

"The ANC could turn him into a scapegoat, and a faction within the party could push for him to be replaced by his deputy, Paul Mashatile. The EFF and MK are also likely to demand his resignation before agreeing to any coalition with the ANC," Prof Gumede told the BBC.

South Africans do not directly vote for a president. Instead they vote for members of parliament who will then go on to elect the president.

The initial results show that the ANC is suffering heavy losses to MK, especially in KwaZulu-Natal, where Mr Zuma's party is leading with 43% of the vote to the ANC's 21%.

Source: Al Jazeera

 

[The Bald Eagle]

South Africa election results live: ANC short of majority after 70% votes​

The ruling African National Congress party in the lead with over 70 percent of the votes counted. However, it is falling short of a majority.

The Democratic Alliance sits second while former President Zuma’s uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party currently third.
If the ANC does not receive more than 50 percent, it will need to make a deal with other parties to form a coalition government.

Officials results are not expected to be announced before Sunday.

Source: Al Jazeera

 

[BouncerGuy]

ANC looks set to share power after historic election loss

With most of the results now in from South Africa's election, the long-ruling African National Congress (ANC) will have to contend with sharing power after a historic loss of its parliamentary majority.

Counting in over 97% of voting districts is complete and the ANC's share of the vote currently stands at 40%.

Trailing behind are the Democratic Alliance (DA) on 22%, the MK party led by former President Jacob Zuma on 15% and the EFF with 9%.

The final results are expected over the weekend.

The ANC has always polled above 50% since the country's first democratic elections in 1994, which saw Nelson Mandela become president.

But support for the party has been dropping significantly due to anger over high levels of corruption, unemployment and crime.

One woman who has voted for the ANC in every election for 30 years switched to the DA this time, and said she wanted them out of power altogether because of the cost-of-living crisis and the frequent power-cuts.

"This result is not good. I wanted it out of government. We need to give someone else a chance," she told the BBC.

Political analyst Sanusha Naidoo told the BBC that although there were a lot of votes still to be counted, there was no way the ANC could reach the 50% needed to form a government on its own. She said the best it could hope for was 45%

So to hold on to power the party will need to form a coalition with one or more other parties.

ANC chairperson Gwede Mantashe said his party was unlikely to form an alliance with the centre-right DA, which is currently polling in second place with 22% of the vote.

He said there would have to be "policy alignment" between parties to a coalition agreement.

For the ANC, its black empowerment policies - aimed at giving black people a stake in the economy following their exclusion during the racist apartheid era - were "non-negotiable".

He added that any coalition partner would have to agree to the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill, which was signed into law earlier this month.

The DA opposes both the NHI and the ANC's black empowerment policies.

Despite the ANC's reluctance to align with the DA, its leader John Steenhuisen hasn't ruled out the idea.

Mr Steenhuisen said if an alliance with the ANC was reached there would be a few non-negotiables.

"Respect for the rule of law and the constitution, a social market economy that treats the private sector as partners in the growth agenda.

"Zero tolerance for corruption and cadre deployment, and an absolute laser-like focus on economic policies that grow jobs."

Mr Steenhuisen also told the BBC he would have to consult pre-election coalition partners before considering any negotiations.

But he ruled out the EFF and the MK party, which both advocate seizing white-owned land and nationalising mines, as potential coalition partners.

"I think instability is not in the best interest of the country. A coalition with the radical left in South Africa of the MK party and the EFF will produce the same policies that destroyed Zimbabwe, destroyed Venezuela," he said.

One possibility would be a coalition between former MK party and the ANC in both KwaZulu-Natal and nationally - but given the fractious relations between the two parties, that appears unlikely.

While Mr Zuma has been suspended from the ANC, he is still a member. He appeared to suggest he would to do a deal with the ANC if it replaced President Cyril Ramaphosa as leader.

"I've got the problem with the leadership of the ANC, not with the ANC itself or its membership," he told the BBC recently.

He was however reluctant to discuss the prospect of entering into a post-election pact with the ANC.

But MK spokesman Nhlamulo Ndhlela seemed to rule out any deal to keep Mr Ramaphosa in post on Friday evening, telling reporters that his party "would not engage in a discussion with the ANC", while the president remained in office.

Another option would be to work with the EFF, led by Julius Malema, a former ANC youth leader. The two parties currently form the coalition that runs the country's biggest city, Johannesburg.

A record 70 parties and 11 independents were running, with South Africans voting for a new parliament and nine provincial legislatures.

The DA has signed a pact with 10 of them, agreeing to form a coalition government if they get enough votes to dislodge the ANC from power.

But this does not include the EFF or MK, who would be needed to form a majority.

As the parties scramble to form alliances, Kenya's former President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is leading the African Union election observer mission in South Africa, offered some advice for forming coalitions.

He said coalition governments need to focus on areas of agreement instead of differences.

"I can only wish them well and hope that the leadership will take this decision by the people in a positive frame," he said.

BBC

 

[MenInG]

The party once led by Nelson Mandela hit by worst election result since apartheid ended 30 years ago
With results from 99% of voting districts declared the ANC has 40%
This is a steep fall since the last election when it got 57%
This means it will have to share power with one or more parties
ANC leaders are preparing for complex coalition talks
The centre-right Democratic Alliance (DA) remains the second-largest party with 22%
The new MK party, led by ex-President Jacob Zuma, is in third place with 15%
It replaces the radical EFF whose share of the vote falls to 9%
The distribution of seats in the 400-member National Assembly directly reflects the vote share

 

[KB]

The party once led by Nelson Mandela hit by worst election result since apartheid ended 30 years ago
With results from 99% of voting districts declared the ANC has 40%
This is a steep fall since the last election when it got 57%
This means it will have to share power with one or more parties
ANC leaders are preparing for complex coalition talks
The centre-right Democratic Alliance (DA) remains the second-largest party with 22%
The new MK party, led by ex-President Jacob Zuma, is in third place with 15%
It replaces the radical EFF whose share of the vote falls to 9%
The distribution of seats in the 400-member National Assembly directly reflects the vote share

The ANC vote slipped below 60% for the first time (in post-apartheid South Africa) in 2019. Now, for the first time it has fallen below 50%. It seems a significant moment in the country's history. I am quite ignorant about South African politics, so I just raise in speculative fashion two questions: is this the start of a more permanent looking decline for the ANC? Despite the turbulence, the country seems to have avoided extremes since the ending of apartheid, but does the election point to a desire for more radical - whether left or right - solutions?

 

[FearlessRoar]

South Africa’s ANC loses 30-year parliamentary majority after election​

The African National Congress (ANC) party has lost its parliamentary majority in a historic election result that puts South Africa on a new political path for the first time since the end of the apartheid system of white minority rule 30 years ago.

With more than 99 percent of votes counted on Saturday, the once-dominant ANC had received nearly 40 percent in Wednesday’s election, well short of the majority it had held since the famed all-race vote of 1994 that ended apartheid and brought it to power under Nelson Mandela.

The main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), had 21.63 percent and uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK), a new party led by former president and ANC leader Jacob Zuma, managed to grab 14.71 percent – pulling away votes from the ANC.

Opposition parties have hailed the result as a momentous breakthrough for a country struggling with deep poverty and inequality, but the ANC remained the biggest party by some way.

“The way to rescue South Africa is to break the ANC’s majority and we have done that,” said main opposition leader John Steenhuisen.

The final results are still to be formally declared by the independent Electoral Commission that ran the election, but the ANC cannot pass 50 percent.

Reporting from the Results Operation Centre in Midrand, South Africa, Al Jazeera’s Mike Hanna said the ANC will try to find a way to form a new government.

“It [ANC] has to find a partner in order to be able to govern. Otherwise it could try to form a minority government which could make it very difficult to pass any form of legislation or advance ANC policy,” he said.

Gwede Mantashe, the ANC chair and current mines and energy minister, told reporters in comments broadcast by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC): “We can talk to everybody and anybody,” dodging a question about who the party was discussing a possible coalition deal with.

Political parties’ shares of the vote determine their seats in the country’s National Assembly, which elects the nation’s president.

President Cyril Ramaphosa can in theory still keep his job, as the former liberation movement was on course to get about twice as many votes as the next party. But he will be weakened and could face calls to quit both from opposition parties and critics in the deeply divided ANC.

On Friday, however, a top ANC official backed him to stay on as party leader, and analysts say he has no obvious successor.

A deal to keep the ANC in the presidency could involve opposition backing in exchange either for cabinet posts or for more control of parliament, perhaps even the speaker.

The election commission has pencilled in a final results announcement for Sunday.

South Africa’s ANC loses 30-year parliamentary majority after election

African National Congress vote share drops to 40 percent, forcing it to seek coalition partners to form government.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[FearlessRoar]

South Africa's coalition talks set to start after ANC loses majority​

Official results from South Africa's election were expected to confirm on Sunday the end of the African National Congress' 30 years of majority governing and start the clock on a race to form a new ruling coalition.

Voters, angry at joblessness, inequality and power shortages, slashed support for the ANC - the former liberation movement of the late Nelson Mandela - to 40% in Wednesday's election, down from 57.5% in the 2019 parliamentary vote.

That means it must now share power, likely with a major political rival, in order to keep it - an unprecedented prospect since the end of white minority rule in 1994.

From the official announcement of results expected on Sunday evening, political parties will have two weeks to work out a deal before a new parliament sits to choose a president, who would likely still emerge from the ANC as the biggest party.

"The ANC is committed to the formation of a government that reflects the will of the people, that is stable and that is able to govern effectively," Fikile Mbalula, the party's secretary general, said at a press briefing on Sunday.

He said the ANC would be having discussions both internally and with other parties to create national and provisional governments "that reflect the will of the people and that are able to take the country forward".

However, he said that the ANC would not bend to pressure from other parties that incumbent President Cyril Ramaphosa must step down as a condition for forming a coalition.

"That is a no-go area," he said.

The ANC's performance has fuelled speculation that Ramaphosa's days might be numbered, either due to the potential demands of a prospective coalition partner or as a result of an internal leadership challenge.

Counting from the May 29 poll was almost complete on Sunday morning, with results in from 99.9% of polling stations.

Before Wednesday, the ANC had won every national election by a landslide since 1994, but over the last decade its support has dwindled as the economy stagnated, unemployment rose and roads and power stations crumbled.

The main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), had 21.8% of votes in last week's election. uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK), a new party led by former President Jacob Zuma, managed to take 14.6%, doing most of the damage to the ANC.

The far-left Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), led by former ANC youth leader Julius Malema, got 9.5%.

Both the DA and the small Inkatha Freedom Party said their leadership would meet separately on Sunday to discuss their next steps.

"The DA is awaiting the final results. Once those are certified, we will look at the final lie of the land, and the structures of the party are meeting to determine the next way to proceed," said DA spokesperson Charity McCord.

There were, however, no coalition talks yet underway with any party, she added.

Mbalula said the ANC's leadership would meet on Tuesday for discussions on the way forward.

Despite doing better than almost anyone expected, MK said it was considering challenging the results in court.

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/south-africa-awaits-election-results-coalition-race-begins-2024-06-02/

 

[FearlessRoar]

South Africa's Ramaphosa says violence has no place after election​

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Monday there was no place for threats of violence or instability after last week's election cost his African National Congress (ANC) party its majority for the first time.

The result, announced on Sunday, was the worst election showing for the ANC, Africa's oldest liberation movement, once led by Nelson Mandela, since it came to power 30 years ago, ending white minority rule.

Voters angry at joblessness, inequality and rolling power blackouts slashed support for the ANC to 40.2%, down from 57.5% in the previous 2019 parliamentary vote.

The result means the ANC must share power, probably with a major political rival, to keep it - an unprecedented prospect in South Africa's post-apartheid history.

"This moment in our country calls for responsible leadership and constructive engagement," Ramaphosa told the nation in a weekly newsletter. "There can be no place for threats of violence or instability."

The sharp drop in ANC support has fuelled speculation that Ramaphosa's days might be numbered, either due to the demands of a prospective coalition partner or as a result of an internal leadership challenge.

But so far senior party officials have publicly backed him, and analysts say he has no obvious successor.

Former president Jacob Zuma's uMkhonto we Sizwe party has said it is considering a court challenge to the election results, despite performing much better than many had expected to come in third with 14.6% of the vote.

Analysts have long feared Zuma's party may stir up trouble if his supporters, who rioted and looted for days when he was arrested for contempt of court in 2021, reject the results.

Ramaphosa added, "South Africans must stand firm against any attempts to undermine the constitutional order ... for which so many struggled and sacrificed."

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/south-africas-ramaphosa-says-violence-has-no-place-after-election-2024-06-03/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=twitter

​

 

[The Bald Eagle]

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has admitted his African National Congress (ANC) party has suffered a challenging election result, after the party lost its majority for the first time since apartheid ended 30 years ago

The ANC, once led by Nelson Mandela, won 159 seats in the 400-seat parliament in Wednesday's election, down from 230 in the previous assembly.

Mr Ramaphosa still described the results as a victory for democracy, calling on rival parties to find common ground - apparently preparing for coalition talks. The opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) party has said it is open to coalition talks with Mr Ramaphosa, but it opposes a number of his government's key priorities. With all the votes counted, the ANC finished on 40% - down from 58% at the previous election, the electoral commission announced on Sunday.
This was lower than the party's feared worst-case scenario of 45%, analysts said. The ANC now must go into a coalition to form the next government.

"Our people have spoken, whether we like it or not, they have spoken," Mr Ramaphosa said.
"As the leaders of political parties, as all those who occupy positions of responsibility in society, we have heard the voices of our people and we must respect their wishes."

He added that the voters wanted the parties to find common ground.

"Through their votes, they have demonstrated clearly and plainly that our democracy is strong and it is enduring," he said.
South Africa's political parties will be aiming to work out a coalition deal within two weeks, when the new parliament sits for the first time.

"We urge all others who love our constitution and all it represents to set aside petty politics and narrow sectarian interests and join hands now," DA leader John Steenhuisen said.

However, his party opposes two of the ANC's key priorities - its black empowerment policies, which aim to giving black people a stake in the economy following their exclusion during the racist apartheid era, and the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill, which promises universal healthcare for all.

The ANC has said both policies are non-negotiable in coalition talks. Former president Jacob Zuma, who now leads the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party that came third with 58 seats, did not attend the results announcement and had suggested that he might challenge them.

The MK has said it would be prepared to work with the ANC, but not while it was led by Mr Ramaphosa. He replaced Mr Zuma as both president and ANC leader following a bitter power struggle in 2018. In a BBC interview, Patrick Gaspard, who was the US ambassador to South Africa in 2013-16, described the two politicians as "sworn enemies".

Earlier on Sunday, Mr Zuma called for an election rerun and said the electoral commission should not announce the final results.

On Saturday, he warned the commission that it would "be provoking us" if it ignored his demand for a fresh election, and for an independent investigation into his party's claims that it was rigged.
"Don’t start trouble when there is no trouble,” he said.

There are now concerns over how Mr Zuma's supporters may respond to the results.

The 82-year-old has been the political wildcard in this election - and he is preparing to flex his muscles as the kingmaker in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal, where the MK party has wrestled a huge chunk of votes from the ANC. Formed just a few months ago, it was the biggest party in the province - getting 44% to the ANC's 19%.

Local issues could have been a big factor in that shift, with some community members turning their backs on the ANC because it had failed to fix acute water shortages. Parts of the province, such as Trenance Park, which is a mere 20 minutes' drive from the main city of Durban, have had no tap water for 10 months.

Residents rely on water tankers that sometimes do not deliver water on time. People in KwaZulu-Natal hope that now the election is over, the problem will be fixed for good.

Source: BBC

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Upsets happening everywhere, even a populist leader cant remain in power forever

 

[BouncerGuy]

South Africa coalition talks go down to the wire

With just hours to go before South Africa's parliament meets for the first time since the governing African National Congress (ANC) lost its majority in last month's elections, negotiations are still continuing over the formation of a new government.

The ANC says it has made a "breakthrough" on forming a government of national unity but it was too early to give details.

However, a spokesman for the main opposition Democratic Alliance, Solly Malatsi, told the BBC: "We are not there yet."

One of parliament's first duties is expected to be a secret vote on whether Cyril Ramaphosa remains president.

Although a coalition deal has still not been finalised, Mr Ramaphosa is expected to be re-elected.

The ANC lost its parliamentary majority for the first time in 30 years in the 29 May election, getting 40% of the vote.

This means it required the backing of other parties for Mr Ramaphosa to remain in power.

"We are talking to political parties as we speak right now," ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula told reporters after a meeting of the party's top officials on Thursday evening, adding he could not give further details.

He did say it would be a move to the political centre, because breakaway ANC parties on the left have said they will not join a coalition.

He said parties including the pro-business DA had agreed on forming a government of national unity.

But the ANC and DA have not agreed on how exactly they will cooperate, Mr Mbalula added.

"If the DA were to get some of these things that it wants it means the ANC will be dead," he said.

The DA came second in the election with 22% of the vote.

President Ramaphosa has previously accused the DA - which draws its support mainly from racial minorities - of being "treasonous" and "reactionary".

Any deal with the DA would be unpopular among many ANC activists.

The party is an advocate of free market economics, which is at odds with the ANC’s left-wing traditions, and has a reputation for representing the interests of the white minority.

BBC

 

[hassan918]

Cyril Ramaphosa re-elected South African president after ANC, DA reach deal​

Cyril Ramaphosa has been re-elected as South Africa’s president for a second term after his party struck a last-minute deal with political rivals.

Ramaphosa’s African National Congress, which came to power in 1994 after waging a decades-long battle against apartheid, lost its majority for the first time in an election last month and spent two weeks locked in intensive behind-the-scenes talks with other parties.

As the newly elected parliament convened on Friday, Democratic Alliance (DA) leader John Steenhuisen said his white-led main opposition party formally signed a governing agreement with the ANC and part of it would make Ramaphosa president.

In a secret ballot hours later during a marathon parliamentary session, Ramaphosa secured his second term with the help of lawmakers from the DA and some smaller parties. The 71-year-old was re-elected by fellow MPs with 283 votes, seeing off a surprise challenge by Julius Malema, the firebrand leader of the radical left-wing Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), whose candidacy gained 44 votes.

Ramaphosa called the deal a “new birth, a new era for our country” and said it was time for parties “to overcome their differences and to work together”.

“This is what we shall do and this is what I am committed to achieve as the president,” added Ramaphosa.

The National Assembly had earlier elected a DA lawmaker as deputy speaker, after choosing an ANC politician as speaker – the first concrete instance of power sharing between the two parties.

Cyril Ramaphosa re-elected South African president after ANC, DA reach deal

African National Congress leader Cyril Ramaphosa secures second term with the help of lawmakers from opposition parties.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[FearlessRoar]

South African opposition MPs take their oaths after ending boycott​

Lawmakers from the South African opposition party uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) have been sworn in at a ceremony in the National Assembly after boycotting the first session, claiming last month’s election was rigged.

Fifty-eight members of the MK, led by former president Jacob Zuma, took their seats in parliament on Tuesday, nearly two weeks after the legislature re-elected the ruling African National Congress (ANC) candidate Cyril Ramaphosa for a second term as president.

In a statement on Monday, the left-wing group said the decision to allow its representatives to take office followed a “period of critical reflection and strategic consultation within the party leadership.”

“We wish to clarify that our decision to take the oath of office does not, in any way, signify an acceptance of the May election results. The MK Party steadfastly maintains that the elections were marred by massive election irregularities, rigging, and outright fraud,” the party stated.

The MK had filed a legal challenge, seeking to block the new National Assembly from holding its inaugural session on June 14. The party, formed late last year, won 15% of the May 29 vote, giving it 58 seats. However, it has insisted that the election was fraudulent, and requested that the Constitutional Court prevent parliament from convening to prevent lawmakers from electing a president until a rerun was organized. The court dismissed the complaint.

Ramaphosa won a new term after his ANC reached a late coalition deal with long-time rival the Democratic Alliance (DA) and other smaller parties. He took office last Wednesday as head of the multi-party Government of National Unity (GNU), which was formed after the ANC lost its parliamentary majority in the May 29 elections.

The ANC, in power for the three decades since the abolition of Apartheid, received only 40% of the vote in the May general election. The party won 159 seats in the 400-member assembly, down from 230. The center-right DA, South Africa’s second-largest party, with support from the white minority, won 87 seats.

The Zuma-led MK party has said it will join the “Progressive Caucus,” an alliance that holds almost 30% of seats in the National Assembly and includes the radical Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), to oppose Ramaphosa’s unity government. The Government of National Unity currently consists of ten parties and controls more than 70% (287) of parliamentary seats, according to an ANC statement on Monday.

The MK party maintained on Tuesday that it does not recognize the legitimacy of the previous parliamentary sitting that resulted in the formation of the “treacherous and unholy coalition between Ramaphosa-ANC and DA.” The GNU, according to MK, “poses a significant threat to the hard-earned freedoms of our people.”

“Our team is committed to tirelessly exposing the covert operations of the DANC coalition, which we view as a pet-project of white monopoly capital,” it warned.

South African opposition MPs take their oaths after ending boycott

South Africa’s opposition uMkhonto weSizwe party says its newly sworn-in lawmakers will resist the “unholy” coalition government

www.rt.com

 

[hassan918]

South Africa’s Ramaphosa names new cabinet as deadlock broken​

South Africa’s president has announced the formation of a new cabinet over a month after elections stripped his African National Congress (ANC) party of its majority.

President Cyril Ramaphosa named 32 ministerial positions of the government of national unity late on Sunday, following weeks of deadlock that delayed the formation of an historic governing coalition.

The announcement sees 20 of the 32 posts going to the ANC. Another six will be filled by the Democratic Alliance (DA) party, with the remainder split among a crowd of smaller coalition parties.

Ramasopha was forced into the unprecedented power-sharing arrangement with DA and others after his party, a dominant force in South African politics since the end of the apartheid era, lost its parliamentary majority for the first time since 1994 in elections on May 29.

Accustomed to comfortable victories of more than 60 percent, the ANC won just 40 percent of the vote in the May 29 election, as South Africans turned away from the party amid frustration over poverty, poor services, and some of the world’s highest rates of inequality and unemployment. The rival DA took the second-largest share with 21 percent.

Ramaphosa said Sunday that those issues would be priorities for the new government.

“We have shown that there are no problems that are too difficult or too intractable that they cannot be solved through dialogue,” said Ramaphosa.

South Africa’s Ramaphosa names new cabinet as deadlock broken

National unity government formed following weeks of deadlock.

www.aljazeera.com