(Johannesburg) The party in power in South Africa since the end of apartheid, the ANC, recorded its worst score, falling for the first time below 50% in a ballot, in the municipal elections, according to official results Thursday.
The African National Congress (ANC) won 46.04% of the vote, announced the electoral commission, the worst result for the historic party of Nelson Mandela which has won every absolute majority vote since the first democratic elections in 1994 .
For 27 years, the century-old movement founded in 1912 has been able to count on votes given in each ballot out of loyalty to the liberation movement. But in recent years, he has faced the disillusionment of a population facing record unemployment (34.4%) and disgusted by the multiple corruption scandals involving senior party officials, including former President Jacob Zuma ( 2009-2018).
“The people have spoken” declared President Cyril Ramaphosa, also head of the ANC, in a speech immediately after the results which he said mark “a new stage in the history of our democracy”. “We need to build trust between citizens and elected officials,” he acknowledged.
During the campaign for this test ballot before the 2024 presidential election, the head of state himself went door to door to garner votes. He has apologized for past “mistakes”, made promises for the future and assured “clean up the party”, without much success so far.
“We are not politically finished”, hammered in front of the press the head of the elections to the party and Minister of Transport, Fikile Mbalula. But in the ranks of the faithful, they are more and more numerous to stop claiming to see flowing in their veins “a black, golden and green blood”, the colors of the ANC. Even in its stronghold of Kwazulu-Natal, the party lost control with 41.4% of the vote.
To turn your back
Much of those angry simply turned their backs on the ballot box. Participation was low: only 47% of the 26.2 million registered attended. Out of 213 local councils, the ruling party came out on top in 161 of them.
For the younger generation of voters, who grew up with the display of dirty party linens, the ANC is synonymous with corruption and carelessness. Years of mismanagement have left public services abandoned in a country where daily life is plagued by power and water cuts.
In July, the country saw a wave of riots and looting in Johannesburg and in the province of Kwazulu-Natal (east), which left more than 350 dead. Initially triggered by the imprisonment of Jacob Zuma, convicted of contempt of justice, the violence was also a sign of a tense social and economic climate.
The ballot took place on Monday without major incident. The army had been called in to reinforce the police for the elections.
According to political scientist William Gumede to AFP, “a psychological barrier” signing the end of the era of absolute domination of the ANC has now been crossed. Without a majority, the party which gathered 54% of the vote in the previous local elections in 2016, will have to resolve to form coalitions with an opposition that remains fractured.
For the Democratic Alliance (DA), the main opposition party, this election “changed the situation” even if it also lost points compared to 2016, to 21.83% against 26.9%. The Freedom Fighters (EFF) radicals have stagnated at around 10%.
In the game of alliances, a young party with a rather liberal tendency which tackles immigration without complex, ActionSA, could become the kingmaker. The movement created a year ago by a black millionaire, Herman Mashaba, has gained ground in big cities like Johannesburg.