Local elections in South Africa: a historic setback for the ANC

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, also head of the ANC, speaks after the local elections in November 2021. AP - Shiraaz Mohamed

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The South African electoral commission officially announced, on the evening of Thursday, November 4, the final results of the local elections, three days after the poll.

The African National Congress (ANC) remains at the head of the majority of municipalities, but its national score is in sharp decline, with 46% of the votes collected in the country.

Unheard of since the first free elections in 1994. 

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With our correspondent in Johannesburg,

Claire Bargelès

The ANC party, founded in 1912, signed

the worst electoral performance in its history

in these

local

elections, gathering less than half of the voters nationwide. Blame it on the growing discontent of South Africans in the face

of

repeated

corruption scandals

and mass unemployment which affects 34% of the population. Many voters have also chosen to shun the ballot box, while the abstention rate has exceeded the historic threshold of 53%.

The president,

Cyril Ramaphosa

, who spoke after the announcement of the results, now calls on local elected officials to " 

listen to the communities they serve

 " and "to 

transform the promises made throughout the campaign into reality

 ", while this result does not bode well for the party for the next general election in 2024.

Public representatives need to be more visible and active in our communities.

They need to focus on implementation and make the people partners in development.



Above all, they need to listen to the communities they serve.

- Cyril Ramaphosa 🇿🇦 (@CyrilRamaphosa) November 4, 2021

If the city of Cap remains in the hands of the main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, the fate of the largest municipalities like those of Johanensburg or Pretoria is not yet sealed: without an absolute majority, room for negotiations between the different formations, in order to find common ground to form coalitions.

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  • South Africa

  • Cyril Ramaphosa