ANC in retreat as cities fall to ‘white man’s party’

South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC) has conceded defeat in the major metropolitan area of Nelson Mandela Bay to the main opposition party amid indications the ruling party was rejected by urban voters in this week’s local government elections.

Voters disenchanted with two decades of rule by the African National Congress (ANC) have slashed its overall support to 54 percent from its once consistent 60-percent-plus, according to almost complete results from Wednesday’s local elections.

The ANC chairman in Gauteng province, which includes both Tshwane and Johannesburg, said his party was also seeking to form a coalition to govern both municipalities, adding there was likely to be no outright victor in either of the urban areas.

A more radical opposition party, the Economic Freedom Fighters, contested the local elections for the first time and received 8% of the vote nationwide after promising measures it says will help the poor.

Overall, the ANC held 53 per cent of the votes compared to the DA’s 27 per cent.

The DA, once anti-apartheid parties run by white politicians, now has many black leaders and campaigned on a platform of good governance, the AP reported.

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) indicated Thursday that collation of results would be completed later Friday.

“For far too long, the ANC has governed South Africa with absolute impunity”, Mr Maimane told reporters.

“It’s becoming increasingly clear that we will be the majority party here”, said the DA’s Nelson Mandela Bay mayoral candidate, Athol Trollip.

“We know it’s a tight race but I can assure you that we will emerge victorious in Tshwane (Pretoria), we will emerge victorious in Johannesburg”, he added.

Complete results were expected late Friday or Saturday.

Now, no party looks likely to win a majority in these three urban centres, ushering in a new era of coalition politics as South Africa shifts from what has effectively been a one-party system in the period immediately post-apartheid. However, the party Mandela once headed has seen a slump in support after landing a national tally of 58.3 per cent of votes, a plunge of eight points from 2011.

“We are into negotiations as we speak”, said Paul Mashatile, the ANC chairman in Gauteng province, which includes Tshwane and Johannesburg.

South Africans have once again come out countrywide to reaffirm the ANC’s progressive, pro-poor, pro-development service delivery agenda.

Many South Africans who queued up to vote across the country said they were anxious about Zuma’s performance and the state of the economy, where one in four in the labour force is unemployed.

The results for the ANC could put pressure on the 74-year-old Zuma to leave office before his mandate ends in 2019, political analysts said.

Scandals swirling around President Jacob Zuma have also hurt the ANC. Opposition groups have seized on a scandal over state upgrades to Zuma’s private home.

Many South Africans who queued up to vote across the country said they were anxious about Zuma’s performance and the state of the economy, where one in four in the labour force is unemployed.

Four months ago, South Africa’s constitutional court found Zuma guilty of violating the constitution after he refused to comply with an anti-corruption watchdog which had ordered him to pay back some of the money.

Many are concerned about the lack of jobs, with a quarter of South Africans being unemployed.