DA growth vindicates South African democracy

31 May 2024

Change has come to South Africa, not through violent protest or instability, but through the ballot box.

The constitution defines South Africa as a multiparty democracy, and we now begin our transition into fulfilling this mission and away from a one party state.

With more than half of voting districts now declared, the Democratic Alliance (DA) celebrates the fact that it is the only party represented in the National Assembly that has registered growth, with all other existing players registering a decline.

The DA is now unquestionably back to a growth path, after growing both in the 2021 local government elections and now the 2024 national and provincial elections, consecutively. The DA has registered significant growth in the Free State, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, the North West, and elsewhere, thanks to many former ANC voters that have chosen to strengthen the DA in the interests of rescuing South Africa.

We are also heartened by the early strong returns in parts of Gauteng, including Soweto, Hammanskraal, Daveyton, Kwa-Thema, and elsewhere in the province.

The DA has also retained its majority in the Western Cape, where voters have rewarded or strong track record of delivery. It is a vindication of the DA’s governance record, and municipal level data shows that where the DA governs locally, voters have likewise given us a vote of confidence nationally and provincially.

We are grateful to the many new voters that have chosen the DA as their political home and delivered us growth. We are also heartened by the many millions of voters who determinedly remained in long queues due to the IEC’s ineptitude, and who were determined to use their vote as their voice to rescue South Africa. We thank you, and we will not let you down.

To this end, I would also like to thank the DA’s Federal Campaign Manager, Greg Krumbock, and Deputy Federal Campaign Manager, Ashor Sarupen, for running a sterling campaign worthy of this momentous result.

From its founding in 2000, the DA’s mission has been to end the ANC’s dominance and to transform South Africa into a vibrant, multiparty democracy where politics is a battle of ideas, and the best ideas win. This is key to building a safe, stable, and more prosperous future for our country.

By ending the ANC’s national majority and electoral dominance, voters have sent a clear message – political parties exist to govern and govern well, not dominate society and achieve hegemony.

The ANC is now a minority party, and will not get its majority back.

To every person who voted DA, we thank you for trusting us to rescue South Africa.

Issued by John Steenhuisen, Leader of the Democratic Alliance, 31 May 2024