The party of Nelson Mandela just suffered its worst election since the end of apartheid


Since 1994, when Nelson Mandela led South Africa out of apartheid and into real democracy, his African National Congress party has won every election with over 60 percent of the vote — until now. In local elections Thursday, the ANC got a mere 55 percent of the vote with 96 percent of the votes counted, eight points below their previous total, and suffered much larger declines in some urban areas. For the first time the ANC lost control of a majority-black city in Nelson Mandela Bay. They may yet lose in Johannesburg, South Africa's largest city, and Pretoria, its capital (results are still too close to call).
The ANC has struggled with corruption and incompetence since the end of Mandela's single term as president in 1999, but loyalty and patronage networks kept voters in the party. But Mandela died in 2013, and more and more young voters have no memory of the apartheid years. Meanwhile, the opposition Democratic Alliance, which pulled in 26 percent, has worked hard to shed its image as a whites and mixed-race only party, catering to black voters and selecting a young black leader, Mmusi Maimane. The radical Economic Freedom Fighters party, which only dates to 2013, pulled in 8 percent of the vote. On current trends, the next general election in 2019 may be the first competitive one in South Africa history.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.
-
Today's political cartoons - March 30, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - strawberry fields forever, secret files, and more
By The Week US Published
-
5 hilariously sparse cartoons about further DOGE cuts
Cartoons Artists take on free audits, report cards, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Following the Tea Horse Road in China
The Week Recommends This network of roads and trails served as vital trading routes
By The Week UK Published
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff Published
-
Supreme Court upholds 'ghost gun' restrictions
Speed Read Ghost guns can be regulated like other firearms
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump sets 25% tariffs on auto imports
Speed Read The White House says the move will increase domestic manufacturing. But the steep import taxes could also harm the US auto industry.
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump allies urge White House to admit chat blunder
Speed Read Even pro-Trump figures are criticizing The White House's handling of the Signal scandal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Waltz takes blame for texts amid calls for Hegseth ouster
Speed Read Democrats are calling for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and national security adviser Michael Waltz to step down
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Judge: Nazis treated better than Trump deportees
speed read U.S. District Judge James Boasberg reaffirmed his order barring President Donald Trump from deporting alleged Venezuelan gang members
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US officials share war plans with journalist in group chat
Speed Read Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to a Signal conversation about striking Yemen
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Canada's Mark Carney calls snap election
speed read Voters will go to the polls on April 28 to pick a new government
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published