Counting Votes in South African Elections; African National Congress Losing Parliamentary Majority

On Thursday, June 1, Reuters reported that with 10% of the votes counted in the South African elections, the ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC), is on track to lose its parliamentary majority after 30 years. Reuters described this trend as the 'most dramatic political change' in South Africa since the end of apartheid. According to the report, the ANC's share so far has been over 42%, while the Democratic Alliance, a pro-business party, has over 26%, and the Economic Freedom Fighters, a Marxist group, has over 8%, placing them in second and third positions, respectively. Reuters noted that if this trend continues by the end of the vote counting, the ANC will be forced to negotiate with one or more other parties to maintain governance, which could lead to unprecedented political fluctuations in the coming weeks or months. According to the South African Constitution, Parliament will elect the next president, and since the ANC will still be the largest party in Parliament, Cyril Ramaphosa, its leader, is likely to retain the presidency. The ANC has won every South African election since 1994, the year apartheid ended and Nelson Mandela was president. However, public support for the party has declined due to rising unemployment, increasing crime, frequent power outages, and financial corruption. The 30th anniversary of the end of apartheid coincided with public dissatisfaction with economic conditions.