The African National Congress (ANC) National Chairperson, Gwede Mantashe, has expressed his shock at the strong performance of the Umkhonto Wesizwe (MK) party in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).
According to the Independent Electoral Commission’s (IEC) election dashboard, with just 7% of the votes counted, MK, led by former President Jacob Zuma, emerged as the leading party in the province with 41.77% (56,931 votes).
The ANC followed in second place with 21.06% (28,699 votes), while the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) secured third place with 17.08% (23,277 votes). The Democratic Alliance (DA) and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) trailed behind with 13.46% (18,342 votes) and 2.28% (3,109 votes), respectively.
Speaking to journalists at the results operations centre, Mantashe blamed the media for the ANC’s decline in performance. He accused one of the television news stations of promoting ‘vote for change’ headlines throughout election day, stating, “When journalists do that, they cease to be journalists; they become pundits.”
Despite expressing surprise at MK’s performance in KZN, Mantashe remains optimistic that the ANC will overcome this challenge, saying, “We are going to swim against that stream, we are streaming against it and we are going to be successful.”
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He also mentioned that the ANC would develop a strategy to address the ‘threat’ posed by MK.
Mantashe expressed concern about the impact of tribalism on the political landscape. “If the results in KZN reflect something different,” he said, “it reflects Zulu tribalism. We should not confine ourselves to such backward forms of politics; they have their time frame and eventually fade away.”
Lei Mchunu, MK’s Chief of Staff, expressed excitement about the election results in KZN. He highlighted that MK is only six months old as a registered political party and is already leading in the province.
“We are very happy, excited to see the numbers on the board. Here we are talking about the MK that is six months old. What you see here is very amazing,” Mchunu stated. He assured that the numbers would continue to rise as they engage with the masses, understanding their needs and aspirations.
However, earlier on Thursday, MK criticized the IEC for “mismanaging the ongoing electoral process” and accused the commission of undermining the constitutional rights of South Africans. Muzi Ntshingila, MK’s head of elections, pointed out that changes to the electoral act, specifically section 24, were poorly communicated just days before the elections, leading to widespread confusion.
Meanwhile, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has predicted a significant decline for the ANC. With 8.5% of the votes counted, the elections forecasters project a massive 15% drop for the ANC. This prediction underscores the challenges faced by the ANC in maintaining its dominance in the South African political landscape.
 party in KwaZulu-Natal, led by former President Jacob Zuma.){kind=link}