The African National Congress has lost the country's elections for the first time in 30 years.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on the country's political parties to work together for the good of the country, as the final results of last week's elections confirmed that his African National Congress (ANC) lost its majority by first time.
The result, announced on Sunday, is the worst election result for the ANC – Africa's oldest liberation movement, once led by Nelson Mandela – since it came to power 30 years ago, ending white minority rule.
Voters, angered by unemployment, inequality and continued blackouts, reduced support for the ANC to 40.2 percent, down from 57.5 percent in the 2019 parliamentary vote.
The main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), won 21.6 percent and uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK), a new party led by former president and ANC leader Jacob Zuma, managed to take 14, 7 percent, taking votes away from the ANC.
Official results showed the ANC won 159 seats in the 400-seat National Assembly, up from 230 previously.
“South Africans expect the parties they voted for to find common ground, overcome their differences and act together for the good of all. That is what South Africans have said,” Ramaphosa said after the electoral commission announced the final results.
He called the election a “victory for our democracy.”
“This is the time for all of us to put South Africa first,” Ramaphosa added.
Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna, reporting from the Results Operations Center in Midrand, South Africa, said the ANC will now try to find a way to form a new government.
“He has to find a partner to be able to govern. Otherwise, it could try to form a minority government, which could make it very difficult to pass any kind of legislation or advance ANC policy,” he said.
Charting a path forward
ANC officials previously said the party felt humiliated by the result and had “nothing to celebrate”, but they supported Ramaphosa, who was once Mandela's chief negotiator on ending apartheid, and said they would not concede. under pressure to resign.
The poor results have fueled speculation that Ramaphosa's days could be numbered, either because of the demands of a potential coalition partner or as a result of an internal leadership challenge.
“That is a no-go zone,” Fikile Mbalula, ANC secretary-general, said at a news conference, the party's first since the election.
“Did we make mistakes? Yes we did it. In governance and everywhere,” he said, adding that the ANC is now committed to forming a government “that is stable and capable of governing effectively.”
Political parties now have two weeks to reach an agreement before the new parliament meets to elect a president, who would probably still come from the ANC as it remains the largest force.
Local media reported that the DA may be willing to sign a cooperation pact with the ANC, supporting it on key decisions in exchange for senior positions in parliament. The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) would also be part of that agreement.
“You would almost certainly think [the ANC] I wouldn't just go to the district attorney. Most likely they will also go for someone like the IFP simply because of the perception that the DA is a very white party,” said Melanie Verwoerd, a political analyst.
ANC leaders will meet on Tuesday to chart the way forward.
