The veteran African National Congress (ANC, by its English-language acronym) has once again become the most voted-for force in the regional and municipal elections held last Wednesday in South Africa, with 30.76% of the votes. However, this figure is the party’s worst record since the establishment of democracy in the country.
In the previous local elections of 2021, the ANC won 46% of the votes and in 2006 it reached 64.82% support. This continued decline is reflected in the map of territorial power: it will now retain an absolute majority in only one of South Africa’s nine provinces, Limpopo, compared with the six in which it dominated after the 2021 elections.
At the municipal level, the setback is also evident. The ANC will control with an absolute majority only two of the country’s eight major cities, far below the six it governed after the last local appointment. Voter turnout has been 52.29%, a somewhat better figure than the 45.9% recorded in 2021.
The Democratic Alliance consolidates itself as the second force with 24.64% of the votes and gains an absolute majority in Cape Town. The MK party, led by former president Jacob Zuma, breaks through as the third option with 9.76% support and prevails in Durban. For its part, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) of Julius Malema remain the fourth political force with 6.22% backing.
"It has been a very catastrophic result for the ANC," the party’s secretary general, Fikile Mbalula, has admitted. "We knew there was a disaster looming. We are looking at it. We went into elections with the cost of living of our people very high. The middle class has left the ANC in large numbers," he said, referring to the accumulated wear and tear among its traditional electorate.
The South African president and ANC leader, Cyril Ramaphosa, has also faced the situation. "We accept the will of the people, however worrying it is. We accept that this is how the people of South Africa have spoken, in our villages, in our cities, in our urban areas. This is their verdict and we accept it with humility. It is a worrying drop, that is how I describe it," he said, taking on the setback at the ballot box.
The reverse in these elections comes after that in 2024 the ANC lost the absolute majority in the national Parliament, which forced it to form a coalition Executive with several formations within the so-called Government of National Unity, a scenario that could now be replicated in different provinces and municipalities.