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Zuma’s ANC registers thumping victory
May 10, 2014, 6:53 am

Schoolchildren walk past a newspaper placard reporting the election victory of Jacob Zuma's African National Congress (ANC) party, based on preliminary results, as the children leave after making a visit to the former house of the late South African President Nelson Mandela, in the Soweto township of Johannesburg, South Africa Friday, May 9, 2014 [AP]

Schoolchildren walk past a newspaper placard reporting the election victory of Jacob Zuma’s African National Congress (ANC) party, based on preliminary results, as the children leave after making a visit to the former house of the late South African President Nelson Mandela, in the Soweto township of Johannesburg, South Africa Friday, May 9, 2014 [AP]

The Jacob Zuma-led African National Congress (ANC) has won a resounding victory in South Africa’s general election, provisional results released by the national election body said.

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) said the ANC garnered 62.16 per cent of the votes.

The principal opposition Democratic Alliance (DA), took 22.22 per cent, while the ultra-left Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) managed 6.35 per cent.

In a report released on Friday, the African Union’s (AU’s) election observer mission said South Africa’s 2014 national and provincial elections were free, fair, transparent and credible.

“The elections were also peaceful and reflect the wishes and aspirations of South Africans,” the report said.

The final results of South Africa’s general elections will be announced at 6 pm (local time) on Saturday, IEC chairperson Advocate Pansy Tlakula announced on Friday afternoon.

The national voter turn-out so far stood at 73.26 per cent.

The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) had forecast that the ANC will get 63.3 per cent of the national vote in the 400-member Parliament, while the DA will gain 22 per cent of the national vote.

Dr. David Hornsby, Senior Lecturer in International Relations at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, writing for The BRICS Post, says the election results demonstrate how entrenched Nelson Mandela’s party is in the imagination of many South Africans.

“Ultimately, what this election result speaks to is how powerful the narrative of the ANC as the liberation party, holds. What seems to be the resonating narrative was one of history and the connection of the ANC to South Africa’s continued progress,” writes Hornsby.

 

TBP