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Final results were announced in South Africa’s landslide election on Wednesday, confirming that the African National Congress party has lost his majority for the first time in 30 years full democracy.
ANC, who led the struggle to free South Africa from apartheid, won just 159 seats in the 400-member National Assembly with a vote share of just over 40%. High unemployment, blackouts, high crime, and crumbling infrastructure contributed to a support hemorrhage for the former liberation movement.
The pro-business Democratic Alliance (DA) won 87 seats, uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) – a new party led by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s bitter rival, former president Jacob Zuma – took 58, and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), a Marxist Leninist a party led by ousted ANC youth leader Julius Malema took 39.
The ANC also lost its majority in three provincial elections: Northern Cape; Gauteng, which is home to the commercial center of Johannesburg and the capital city of Pretoria; and KwaZulu-Natal, where MK was the largest party.
Zuma warned before the results were announced that this should not continue, saying “people will be provoked” and raising the specter of the deadly riots that erupted when he was jailed in 2021.
Ramaphosa’s position was not on the table for the coalition talks that will now take place, the ANC secretary-general said before the final results were announced.
Fikile Mbalula told a press conference at the election results centre: “If you come to us demanding that Ramaphosa step down as president, that will not happen. This is a restricted area. You come to us with this request, forget it.’
MK leaders have said they will not work with the ANC as long as it is led by Ramaphosa, against whom Zuma is hell-bent on revenge. Zuma was president from 2009 to 2018 and was forced to resign from the ANC over corruption allegations, which he denies.
“Political parties have approached us and we will talk to … everyone,” Mbalula said. “Talks of negotiation are in full swing.”
“We have a lot of reservations about this party, but we will talk to them,” he told MK. “But no political party will dictate such terms to us as the ANC.”
The ANC is at its weakest since it came to power under Nelson Mandela in 1994. However, it has options beyond Zuma’s MK.
A link with the DA may be favored by the friendlier wing of the ANC. However, such a coalition would face criticism from many black South Africans who believe that the white-led DA is supporting the interests of white people, which the DA denies. Some analysts said bringing in a black-led third party could help the ANC deflect those criticisms.
DA leaders said a coalition is an optionas well as a “confidence and supply” agreement with a minority ANC government and remaining in opposition.
Another option for the ANC, which is likely to be favored by the left wing of the party, is to link up with the EFF.
However, this option will require another partner to clear the required 50%. Often mentioned is the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), which took 17 seats and, like MK, gets most of its support from the Zulu people.
Meanwhile, the MK is demanding a recount, making baseless accusations of vote manipulation.
“Nobody has to declare tomorrow. If that happens, people will be provoked, we know what we are talking about,” Zuma, 82, told reporters at the results center on Saturday. “Don’t make trouble when there’s no trouble.”
The remarks by Zuma, who was the ANC’s intelligence chief during apartheid, sparked fears of violence. More than 300 people were killed in riots in July 2021 after Zuma was jailed for contempt of court.
The constitution stipulates that parliament must meet within 14 days of the final election results and elect a president at that first meeting.
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