President Cyril Ramaphosa has officially set the date for South Africa’s national election on May 29.
The African National Congress, led by Ramaphosa, faces a significant challenge in maintaining its majority amid the country’s economic struggles, including high unemployment, electricity crises causing blackouts, and widespread voter mistrust due to corruption allegations.
Polls indicate a potential dip below 50%, marking a significant shift for the ANC, once celebrated globally during Nelson Mandela’s leadership.
If the party loses its majority, coalition discussions may emerge, a new scenario for South Africa’s national politics dominated by the ANC since the end of apartheid in 1994.
In South Africa’s general election, voters choose a party rather than a presidential candidate. The 400-seat Parliament is then allocated based on each party’s vote share, and lawmakers subsequently elect the president.
While the ANC is anticipated to secure the largest vote share, a poll suggests a significant drop to below 40%.
The Democratic Alliance, the main centrist opposition, is engaging in talks to form a coalition with other opposition parties, aiming to challenge the ANC’s governance. However, achieving a collective majority above 50% would require substantial increases in the vote share for all involved parties.
The third-largest party, the far-left Economic Freedom Fighters, isn’t part of the opposition coalition but has garnered increased support, drawing voters away from the ANC. In the last general election, it was the sole among the three major parties to augment its share.
Democratic Alliance leader John Steenhuisen said the election date announcement began “a countdown to a historic moment where South Africa has the opportunity to rescue itself from 30 years of ANC failure, corruption, and state capture.”
The EFF said the election is “an opportunity for all South Africans to put an end to the misery we have suffered as a nation under the incompetent, corrupt and misguided governance of the ruling party, the ANC.”
The vote will be the seventh fully democratic election in South Africa. Before 1994, Black people were not allowed to vote. Ramaphosa announced the election date in a statement from his office.
“Beyond the fulfilment of our constitutional obligation, these upcoming elections are also a celebration of our democratic journey and a determination of the future that we all desire,” he said. “I call on all South Africans to exercise their democratic right to vote and for those who will be campaigning to do so peacefully, within the full observance of the law.”
The ANC has won every national election since 1994 by a clear majority, but its support has gradually waned in the last 20 years. The biggest wakeup call came in local elections in 2021, when the ANC slipped below 50%.
