South Africa’s election on May 29 was an endurance test for the public. Queues snaked around polling stations, with voters standing in line for up to six or seven hours. Some only finally cast their votes at 3am the following morning.
However, the election proved at least as significant as had been predicted. Although the final votes are still being counted, it is clear that the African National Congress (ANC), which has governed South Africa since the end of apartheid in 1994, has suffered a major drop in support. Projections by a state research body suggest it will win just 42% of the national vote.
The ANC’s share has declined by 15 percentage points since the last general election in 2019, when it took 57.5% of the vote. This will leave President Cyril Ramaphosa without a parliamentary majority and in need of coalition allies for the ANC to continue to govern.
