South Africans are voting in pivotal general elections in which the ANC could lose its majority for the first time since 1994.
For the first time in 30 years, South Africa’s governing party faces election worries. Support for the ANC is expected to dramatically fall, and it may lose its parliamentary majority.
But even as the ANC struggles to attract voters, analysts say it has one key advantage that could help it stay in power: a splintered, disorganised opposition.
With 70 political parties and 11 independent candidates contesting the May 29 national and provincial elections, the opposition is fragmented. The ANC received 57 percent of the vote in the last general elections held in 2019 but its support is expected to plummet given rising unemployment, a persisting power crisis and allegations of growing misgovernance.
According to a recent opinion poll by market research firm Ipsos, the ANC’s support now sits at 40.2 percent.
The ANC, as the main liberation movement that fought and helped end apartheid, has sought to downplay the role and relevance of the opposition in South Africa. Among the new entrants to the political sphere is the uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) party led by former South African president Jacob Zuma. The Ipsos poll predicted this party may garner up to 8.4 percent in support.
The ANC is losing support to Zuma’s new political party mainly in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal.
Credit: aljazeera.com
