South Africa 2024 Elections LIVE: ANC support drops to 42% days before election, survey finds – Firstpost

South Africa 2024 Elections LIVE Updates: The ANC won 57.5% of the vote in the last national election in 2019, its worst result to date read more

With 44.76% of males and 55.24% of women registered to vote, there were 27.753,059 registered voters in South Africa.

With this being the 30th anniversary of democratic democracy, it is rumoured to be the most fiercely contested election ever.

It is election day on May 29, and South Africans will vote on which political party they want to lead the country.

Because Khumalo was no longer a member and leader of the MK party, the party had protested about Khumalo’s trips to the IEC’s ROC.

The Results Operation Centre (ROC) in Midrand was given a day pass for Jabulani Khumalo, the former head of the MK party, and the IEC has supported this decision.

In the last five elections, the official opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) has placed second.

With 57.5 percent of the vote, the ANC won with the smallest margin of victory in the 2019 election.

The ANC received 62.5 percent of the vote in 1994. It received 66.4 percent in 1999. It achieved its pinnacle in 2004, winning over 70 percent of the vote. It won almost 66 percent in 2009 and 62 percent in 2014.

From the fall of apartheid in 1994, when Nelson Mandela was elected as the nation’s first Black president, the African National Congress (ANC) has won every election since then.

When was the last election and what were the results?

For the first time, 31 political parties will run in the national elections.

Seventy political parties submitted nominations for them, with the exception of eleven independents.

14,889 candidates were approved by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) to run for 887 seats in the elections.

Independent candidates are now able to run for seats in provincial legislatures and the National Assembly for the first time.

The National Assembly will be chosen with two ballots, while each province’s provincial assembly members will be chosen with a third poll.

Voters will receive three ballots instead of two for the first time. They will have to select one party or one candidate each ballot.

The population of each of the nine provinces is used to calculate the number of seats in provincial legislatures.

Two hundred of those seats will be fought by national ballot parties, while the other two hundred will be split among the nine regions and contested by independent candidates and political parties.

Parties and candidates are vying for 400 seats in the National Assembly by voting under a proportional system.

With political division on the rise, over 27 million individuals are registered to vote in a poll. In this election, which will choose nine province legislatures and a new parliament for South Africa, a record 70 parties and 11 independents are running.

Voting opened for South Africans in the most important election since the racist apartheid system was abolished in 1994.

If the ANC gets less than 50% of the national vote it will have to seek one or more coalition partners to govern the country, the first such alliance in the 30 years since it swept to power with Nelson Mandela as its leader at the end of apartheid.

Voters are electing nine provincial legislatures and a new national parliament, which will then choose the country’s next president.

South Africans started voting on Wednesday in an election that could mark a big political shift if the governing African National Congress party loses its majority as opinion polls suggest.

The MK party was only registered in September 2023, making it a recent entry. When former president Jacob Zuma, who has a falling out with the ANC, said in December that he was supporting it, it gained a significant boost.

The EFF was founded in 2013 by Julius Malema, a fiery former leader of the ANC’s youth wing who left the party. Young, Black, and impoverished voters make up the majority of the party’s supporters.

Cape Town, the second-most populous city in South Africa, is located in the Western Cape, where the party holds provincial government authority.

In the last election, the pro-business DA received the second-highest percentage of the vote. To increase its popularity, it has forged alliances with several minor parties.

However, because of ongoing poverty and inequality, high unemployment, scandals involving corruption, unstable electricity supplies, and high crime rates, its support has declined recently.

Many Black South Africans, particularly those who are older, have a strong sense of devotion to the African National Congress (ANC) because of the party’s history as a liberation movement led by Nelson Mandela that helped bring an end to apartheid and usher in a multiracial democracy.

🚨We're officially on! Voting stations are now open until 9pm. Don't forget your SA ID and share a pic of your inked thumb! Happy voting, South Africa🇿🇦. It's your democracy, own it! #SAelections24 #VoteSA #DemocracyInAction pic.twitter.com/d1YLi2dFzh

It's your democracy, own it, tweets Electoral Commission of South Africa

Several young people are dissatisfied with the ANC, and once again, the topic of change comes to the forefront, this is where people may come together to rock the boat and alter the government.

The African National Congress is facing its most challenging election yet. The party has also been accused of widespread corruption, and there are concerns about some of its leaders. People are saying they want change, and they are voting for it right now.

Since 2007, energy outages have grown so prevalent that the state-owned utility Eskom has created a timetable for them. These episodes of national rage are referred to as “load shedding”.

According to South African media, Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa and the country’s power utility Eskom “offered assurances that no load shedding will be implemented on Wednesday”.

Brigadier Hlulani Mashaba, a Limpopo police spokeswoman, said a 34-year-old man was arrested after allegedly “disrupting members of a certain political party during a door-to-door campaign,” while three others were held for reportedly threatening a lady over her vote.

According to South Africa’s News24 media site, police detained four persons in Limpopo province in connection with election-related events.

When's a good time to vote in South Africa today? Looking at the 2014 and 2019 elections, anytime in the afternoon and early evening. Polls close at 9 pm. Source: @IECSouthAfrica Data visualisation: @outlierafrica #SAelections24 #SAVotes2024 #WeAreVoting #Elections2024 pic.twitter.com/zY9oTbVZ8U

The provincial legislature ( pink ballot ) is unique to each province. Voters select political parties and independent candidates. The number of seats is determined by the population size of each province.

Regional National Assembly ( orange ballot ): Voters can pick between political parties or independent candidates. The ballot determines the remaining 200 members in the National Assembly.

The national ballot ( blue ballot ) is the same across the country. Voters choose from 52 political parties. The ballot determines 200 seats in the National Assembly.

All voters will get three paper ballots at their polling stations:

Partial results are expected within hours of polls closing. The electoral commission will announce the final results on Sunday.

#sapsGP [SAFETY AND SECURITY] Gauteng #ProvJOINTS gets ready to deploy 10 multidisciplinary airborne surveillance helicopters and drones as well as route security law enforcement and security forces to monitor #SAelections24 in the province. #EyeInTheSky ME pic.twitter.com/wAmWicq9fO

The electoral commission is anticipated to begin announcing partial results within hours of voting booths closing at 9 p.m. local time, with seven days to declare complete results.

South Africans are voting for nine provincial legislatures and a new national parliament, which will pick the next president.

The ANC has historical ties to Palestine, has openly criticised human rights crimes under Israeli rule, and has petitioned the International Court of Justice, alleging Israel of genocide in its attack on Gaza.

The South African government’s support for Palestine has emerged as a recurrent issue in pre-election debates, and several political parties’ campaigns have included professions of sympathy with the people of Gaza.

The lower chamber of South Africa’s Parliament currently has 400 members from 14 political parties. Seats are apportioned proportionally depending on the votes each party obtained in the 2019 elections.

Councillor Simon Lapping stated that he was aware of the situation and was working to resolve it.

First-time voters! Voting for the first time is like unlocking a new level in citizenship. Take a deep breath, cast your ballot with confidence, and know that you're making history. Here are 5 tips to get you through today. Let's do this! ✖ 💪 #SAelections24 #FirstTimeVoter pic.twitter.com/Wt5Padsstg

Each political party will be allocated a number of seats in the National Assembly proportional to the number of votes it gets. In the last election the ANC had 57.5% of votes, which translated into 230 seats.

South African voters will go to the polls to elect a 400-member National Assembly, as they have done every five years since the end of apartheid in 1994. The lawmakers will then elect the country’s next president.

After the vote, the new National Assembly will choose the country’s next president from among its members.

South Africans vote in national and provincial elections on May 29 that polls suggest could loosen the African National Congress’ 30-year grip on power.

The IEC’s Eastern Cape election officer, Kayakazi Magudumana, has verified that nine voting sites remain blocked in the province owing to community demonstrations.

Local daily Witness stated that electronic difficulties forced election officers in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal’s capital, to return to conventional methods of collecting vote data. According to reports, this caused a 30-minute delay in the start of voting at one location.

According to social media reports, voting is going well in much of South Africa on this frigid winter morning, however some stations were delayed due to technological issues.

#PoliceMinistry The Minister of Police, General Bheki Cele talks about the SAPS escorting ballot papers and the deployment of the SANDF, overall assuring South Africans that the SAPS remains ready to safeguard #SAelections24 , during and after the elections. #ElectionsSafety ML pic.twitter.com/E3SdBryLAM

After voting in Soweto, Ramaphosa told reporters that he had “no doubt whatsoever that the people will once again remain confident in the ANC”.

The ANC has held an absolute majority in the National Assembly since the birth of democracy in 1994, but opinion surveys indicate that it may dip below 50 percent for the first time.

President Ramaphosa cast his ballot and stated that he had “no doubt” that the electorate would “once again” support his party.

The recurring power outages, known as “load-shedding” in South Africa, will reach record levels in 2023, turning off energy to everything from homes and businesses to traffic signals and hospitals for up to 10 hours every day.

The utility became dysfunctional in part because corruption flourished during former President Jacob Zuma’s presidency from 2009 to 2018.

Eskom has been trying to keep its old coal-fired power reactors running.

Scheduled power interruptions enforced by South Africa’s national utility Eskom due to an inability to generate enough energy are a major concern for voters.

#SAvote24 By 08:30am ballot papers and voters roll had not arrived at Craighall Primary School in Johannesburg. Hundreds waiting in queue including some first time voters. #sabcnews pic.twitter.com/EJxrjCPlDa

In Soweto, the former Black township that became the unofficial capital of the liberation struggle, older ANC supporters showed up early, but as the lines became longer, there were hints of discontent with the party.

Once revered under the guidance of Nelson Mandela and hailed as a symbol of hope by the Black majority after the end of apartheid in 1994, the ANC’s image has been tarnished by soaring unemployment rates, pervasive poverty, the breakdown of certain government services, and over a decade of corruption scandals, leading many voters to feel disenchanted.

For years, the African National Congress (ANC) transcended mere politics in South Africa. It stood as a movement committed to liberating Black people from the grip of white minority rule and dedicated to the noble ideals of democracy, equality, and a brighter future for all South Africans.

According to a police spokeswoman, the three ladies rushed to a voting station at Bosugakobo Primary School and blocked the door while demanding the dismissal of the presiding officer.

Police in North West province detained three women for disrupting the operations of the Electoral Commission, according to News24.

Opposition parties are aiming for as large a turnout as possible, so they can entice voters to vote in their favour.

Many people believe that democracy and voting will not bring about the desired change or make a difference since they have witnessed the ANC’s bad performance and question who else to vote for and whether that party would make a difference.

Opposition parties are aiming for as large a turnout as possible, so they can entice voters to vote in their favour.

Many people believe that democracy and voting will not bring about the desired change or make a difference since they have witnessed the ANC’s bad performance and question who else to vote for and whether that party would make a difference.

“For the past two days, the community of Lower Zingcuka has been protesting, blocking access to the village and preventing special voting. It is one of nine voting stations disrupted by communities in the Eastern Cape to vent their grievances with the government,” the report said.

A small community from Eastern Cape province called the ‘Keiskammahoek’ has decided to boycott the polling process over a dispute over millions of rand owed to them in land claims, according to a report by Times Lives.

Many voters in Cape Town’s Bo Kaap, which is home to a large number of Muslims, have arrived at the polling station wearing Palestinian flag colours and keffiyehs as Palestine is a “big issue for voters” in the area.

Malema’s wealth and lifestyle have attracted criticism from political rivals who deride his penchant for flashy cars, gold watches, champagne and luxury mansions.

His ability to turn up the heat on the country’s simmering racial and class tensions and pledge to redress persistent racial and economic disparities resonate with unemployed, disenfranchised urban Black youths, middle-class students struggling to afford fees and graduates unable to find decent jobs.

Julius Malema, who quit the ruling African National Congress to form the radical leftist party Economic Freedom Fighters, could potentially become a kingmaker or even deputy president if the ANC loses its majority.

Julius Malema: 'We are here to take over government'

“The elections are going on well. The contest this year is quite severe,” said Jonathan, who is leading an observer mission of the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy for Africa. “The struggle is a bit tougher and more challenging to even the bigger parties. But so far it is going okay. Of course, the electoral commission of South Africa we trust them and we know they will not disappoint us.”

In the meantime, more over a hundred prisoners at the Mpumalanga Barberton Correctional Facility cast ballots. There, delays brought on by officials of the Electoral Commission (IEC) delayed the commencement of voting by an hour.

According to media reports, more than 17,000 prisoners housed in 240 institutions are anticipated to cast their votes at correctional facilities nationwide today. With 2,900 registered voters among its inmates, the Kgosi Mampuru Correctional Facility in Pretoria has the greatest number.

“I don’t think we’re going to solve South Africa’s problems by having the same people at the same table, making the same poor decisions that have the same negative effects on South Africa,” he declared.

“This is the most consequential election since 1994,” upon completing his voting process in Durban. It would be better, if political groups other than the ANC to unite and form a government,” he said.

Democratic Alliance (DA) party leader John Steenhuisen has urged voters to turn up at the polling booths in high numbers. The Democratic Alliance (DA) had secured the second-largest share of the vote in the last election which were held in 2019.

Surrounded by his supporters, former president Jacob Zuma cast his vote in his hometown of Nkandla. The South African Constitutional Court had declared that Zuma’s 15-month jail sentence for contempt of court disqualified him from contesting the election.

“It’s a turning point. It’s a point where our country will make serious inroads. The voter will decide which direction we are going as a country. So we should be able to see some changes from these elections. We see ourselves overtaking the ANC, not the DA. The DA is small boys. We have no time for small boys. We’re going for the real giant, which is the ANC. We are in an election to remove the ANC. We are here to take over government,” he added.

“Today, the youth belong to the EFF,” he was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Voting in his native province of Limpopo was Julius Malema, who left the ruling African National Congress (ANC) to found the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).

“We also unfortunately report that there were a number of voting stations that opened late due to materials arriving late and in some lack of security escort.”

“By 7am, 93 percent of our network of 23,292 stations were reported open,” he told the media.

The elections have had a “smooth start,” according to Masego Sheburi, deputy CEO for electoral operations at the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).

More than 27 million voters are registered for the most uncertain poll since the African National Congress (ANC) led the nation out of apartheid rule.

South Africa’s ruling ANC was fighting Wednesday to defy expectations that it could lose its three-decade-long exclusive grip on power, as voters turned out for a watershed general election.

The commission is required by law to release the full results within seven days.

South Africa’s election commission often releases partial results within hours of voting booths closing at 9 p.m. The national picture will gradually emerge over the next days.

There are just a few hours left to vote in the South African election, but when will the results be available?

For the first time, voters will receive three ballots rather than two. On each ballot, they will have to select one party or one candidate.

In provincial legislatures, the number of seats is established based on the size of the population in each of the nine provinces.

Parties on the national ballot will compete for 200 of those seats, while the remaining 200 are allocated among the nine regions and contested by parties and independent candidates.

Voting is conducted in a proportional system, with parties and candidates fighting for 400 seats in the National Assembly.

Today I cast my ballot for the 2024 General Election at Northwood School in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. This is a critical election for South Africa and tomorrow can be a better country but only if we vote for it. Rescue SA, Vote DA. pic.twitter.com/GQPI7YQtGf

Tomorrow can be a better country but only if we vote for it, says John Steenhuisen

Since the first post-apartheid election in 1994, voter confidence in the voting box’s potential to bring about constructive change has eroded, leading to a steady decline in turnout.

Masego Sheburi, a senior official of the electoral commission, stated during a briefing around six hours before the election, “If early indications are anything to go by, we may match or just surpass the 66% voter turnout (seen in the last election in 2019).”

This is a great day for democracy in South Africa. Today we vote for the stability and the extension of our democracy. Today South Africa decides on the future of our country and I have no doubt that once again the people will invest their confidence and give the mandate to the… pic.twitter.com/6RUhQxaPlr

Today we vote for the stability, extension of our democracy, says Cyril Ramaphosa

By the afternoon of election day, Kayakazi Magudumana, the IEC’s electoral officer in the Eastern Cape, reported that five polling sites were shuttered owing to protests about service delivery difficulties.

According to local media Times Live, several voters in the Eastern Cape region were unable to vote owing to power failures, demonstrations, and a lack of water, among other concerns.

At the unveiling of the ANC’s manifesto in February, President Cyril Ramaphosa listed the party’s six key areas.

What the ANC said it would do

That represents a considerable dip from the party’s 57.5 percent vote share in the previous general election in 2019. Under a scenario based on the 66 percent turnout in that election, the think tank estimated that support for the main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) would be 21.6%.

According to a Tuesday update of a tracking survey from South Africa’s Social Research Foundation, ANC support has slipped to 42.2% only days before the election.

President Zuma says for us to be free and get out of poverty, let's vote for UMkhonto Wesizwe. #PreaidentZuma #WeVotingMK #VoteMKP2024 pic.twitter.com/3cGhpKF4jF

Vote for UMkhonto Wesizwe to be free, get out of poverty, says former President Zuma

#sapsKZN The Provincial Commissioner of KwaZulu-Natal Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi is currently taking off on a police helicopter to monitor deployments from the skies and fly over some voting stations which were classified as high risk. Both SAPS and SANDF helicopters… pic.twitter.com/KKqbHU4ZOF

Zibi, 48, who founded Rise Mzansi last year and has been campaigning on what he describes as social democratic ideas, said a good result for his party would be to get 5% of the vote. That would translate into 20 seats in the national parliament.

New political party Rise Mzansi hopes the election will provide it with the chance to make innovative deals and improve parliamentary oversight, its leader Songezo Zibi told Reuters in an interview earlier this month.

With polls suggesting the African National Congress will lose its majority for the first time since the end of apartheid, smaller parties have come into focus as potential coalition partners or kingmakers.

There are more than a million people from neighbouring Zimbabwe living in South Africa – many of them irregular migrants who crossed the border illegally.

The most recent census in 2022 found that 2.4 million of South Africa’s population of 62 million people were immigrants, compared with 835,000 in 1996, the year the post-apartheid constitution was promulgated.

Voter Bongani Mngomezulu stated that he was unable to locate his ID on election morning despite scouring his residence, but felt compelled to vote and applied for a temporary identity.

Residents waited in huge lines at Home Affairs in Johannesburg’s Randburg district to receive a temporary ID paper so they could vote before the polls closed at 9 p.m. (19:00GMT), according to Times Live.

South Africans will vote on Wednesday in what is being billed as their country’s most significant election in 30 years, and it has the potential to plunge their fledgling democracy into unfamiliar terrain.

The African National Congress party, which brought South Africa out of apartheid’s harsh white minority rule in 1994, is defending its three-decade domination. It is now the focus of a new generation of dissatisfaction in a country of 62 million people, with half of them thought to be poor.

Africa’s most sophisticated economy has some of the world’s most severe socioeconomic challenges, including one of the worst unemployment rates (32%). Some groups argue that this is an undercount.

The persisting disparity, with poverty and unemployment disproportionately hitting the Black majority, threatens to overthrow the party that vowed to abolish apartheid with the motto “a better life for all”.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who leads the ANC, has committed to “do better.” The ANC has requested more time and patience.

Any shift in the ANC’s leadership structure might have far-reaching consequences for South Africa.

After winning six consecutive national elections, numerous surveys show the ANC’s support is less than 50% ahead of this one, a historic dip. It may lose its parliamentary majority for the first time, while being largely projected to hold the most seats.

Support has been fading. The ANC won 57.5% of the vote in the last national election in 2019, its worst result to date.

If it does lose its majority, the ANC will likely face the prospect of having to form a coalition with others to stay in government and keep Ramaphosa as president. An ANC having to co-govern has never happened before.

The opposition to the ANC is fierce, but fragmented. The two biggest opposition parties, the Democratic Alliance and the Economic Freedom Fighters, are not predicted to increase their vote by anything near enough to overtake the ANC.

Instead, disgruntled South Africans are moving to an array of opposition parties; more than 50 will contest the national election, many of them new. One is led by South Africa’s previous president, who seeks revenge on his former ANC colleagues.