Politics of the Western Cape

Western Cape
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politics and government of
the Western Cape

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Politics of South Africa

The politics of the Western Cape are more complex than in most other provinces of South Africa, because, unlike the other provinces, the African National Congress (ANC) does not dominate the political landscape.

In the election of 2004, no party achieved an absolute majority in the province, with the ANC having a plurality of 45% of the votes. However, the ANC was in an alliance with the New National Party (NNP), which had 11% of the votes, which allowed the ANC-NNP coalition to form a provincial government. During the 2005 floor crossing period all of the NNP members of the Provincial Parliament moved to the ANC, giving the ANC an absolute majority in the province. The ANC chose Ebrahim Rasool as Premier; in 2008 he was replaced by Lynne Brown. The provincial leader of the ANC is Mcebisi Skwatsha.

The official opposition in the Western Cape after the 2004 elections was the Democratic Alliance (DA), which received 27% of the vote in the provincial ballot. The City of Cape Town, the most populous municipality in the province, was governed by a multi-party coalition led by the DA after the 2006 municipal elections. The DA increased its share of the vote during the 2011 municipal elections to 61.09%, giving them a firm majority and allowing them to govern the City of Cape Town without their former coalition partners [1]

In the election of 22 April 2009 the ANC was unseated by the DA, which took 51.46% of the vote.[2] This election marked the first time since the end of apartheid that a party scored an overall majority in the province. The DA leader Helen Zille replaced Lynne Brown as Premier on 6 May 2009.[3]

In the election of 7 May 2014 the DA maintained its hold on the province, increasing its majority to 59.4%.

Election results

 
Party Votes % +/− Seats +/−
Democratic Alliance 1,259,645 59.38 [lower-alpha 1]Increase 3.25 26 [lower-alpha 1]Increase 2
African National Congress 697,664 32.89 Increase 1.34 14 Steady 0
Economic Freedom Fighters 44,762 2.11 New 1 New
African Christian Democratic Party 21,696 1.02 Decrease 0.45 1 Steady 0
Al Jama-ah 13,182 0.62 [lower-alpha 2]Decrease 0.06 0 Steady 0
Congress of the People 12,520 0.59 Decrease 7.15 0 Decrease 3
Independent Civic Organisation 11,949 0.56 New 0 New
Freedom Front Plus 11,587 0.55 Increase 0.12 0 Steady 0
United Democratic Movement 10,199 0.48 Decrease 0.23 0 Steady 0
Patriotic Alliance 8,510 0.40 New 0 New
African Independent Congress 6,508 0.31 New 0 New
Agang SA 6,398 0.30 New 0 New
Pan Africanist Congress 3,591 0.17 Decrease 0.06 0 Steady 0
National Party 2,694 0.13 Decrease 0.04 0 Steady 0
African People's Convention 1,291 0.06 Decrease 0.03 0 Steady 0
African National Party 1,249 0.06 New 0 New
Indigenous Peoples Organisation 1,180 0.06 New 0 New
United Christian Democratic Party 1,158 0.05 Decrease 0.02 0 Steady 0
Inkatha Freedom Party 1,078 0.05 Decrease 0.01 0 Steady 0
Azanian People's Organisation 844 0.04 Decrease 0.03 0 Steady 0
National Freedom Party 763 0.04 New 0 New
South African Progressive Civic Organisation 642 0.03 New 0 New
First Nation Liberation Alliance 635 0.03 New 0 New
Kingdom Governance Movement 490 0.02 New 0 New
Sibanye Civic Association 478 0.02 New 0 New
Peoples Alliance 440 0.02 New 0 New
Total 2,121,153 100.00 42
Valid votes 2,121,153 99.12
Spoilt votes 18,937 0.88
Total votes cast 2,140,090 100.00
Registered voters/turnout 2,941,333 72.76
Source: IEC

Notes:

  1. 1 2 Compared to the combined performance of the Democratic Alliance and the Independent Democrats in 2009.
  2. ↑ Compared to the combined performance of Al Jama-ah and the Africa Muslim Party in 2009.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.politicsweb.co.za/news-and-analysis/2011-election-cape-town-results
  2. ↑ 2009 provincial results News24. 25 April 2009
  3. ↑ "Applause as Zille secures premiership". IOL. 6 May 2009. Retrieved 6 May 2009.

See also

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