The DA's growth is a victory for all South Africans
9 May 2014
The DA would like to thank every South African for voted for us on Wednesday. We deeply appreciate the support they have given us, and we will work hard over the next five years to justify their faith in us.
The DA's increase from 16.6% in 2009 to 22.2% in the 2014 election (a 33.7% increase) shows that we are growing across South Africa. Voters responded positively to our campaign, which was centred on the DA's offer of clean government and job creation.
This election result is the culmination of years of planning and hard work. I would like to thank every activist, staff member, volunteer and public representative for everything they have contributed towards this campaign. We can look back proudly on what was undoubtedly the biggest and best campaign the DA has ever run.
The 2014 election delivered the DA's best election result in a general election:
1. We look set (at 12h10) to break through the 4 million voter mark, adding 1.1 million new supporters to the 2.9 million who voted for us in 2009.
2. We registered significant national growth, while the ANC's support decreased from 65.9% in 2009 to 62.2% in 2014.
3. We grew in every single province.
4. We retained the Western Cape with an increased majority, from 51.5% to 59%. This significant increase is a vote of confidence in the DA's track record in government.
5. We increased our share of the vote in Gauteng from 22% to 32.3% (as at 12h10 today). This is an increase of over 40%.
6. We doubled our share of the vote in the Northern Cape from 12% to 24%.
7. We will become the official opposition in five provinces where we weren't previously: KwaZulu-Natal (for the first time), the Eastern Cape, the Free State, the Northern Cape and Mpumalanga.
8. ANC support has dropped in every single province, except for KwaZulu-Natal. ANC support has decreased significantly in some of the major metros. ANC support is below 50% in the Nelson Mandela Metro and is likely to end up below 54% in both Tshwane and the City of Johannesburg, putting all three of these municipalities in play for the 2016 local government elections.
9. We grew our support amongst black South Africans from 0.8% in 2009 to approximately 6% in 2014. 40% of these votes were won in Gauteng.
10. Roughly 760 000 black South Africans voted for the DA. This is more than the IFP, NFP, PAC and UCDP combined and more than any other party besides the ANC and EFF. 20% of our votes in this election were cast by black South Africans.
11. We grew our support significantly among Indian South Africans (from 53.7% to 61%) and coloured South Africans (55.5% to 67.7%). Our support among white South Africans increased from 83.9% to 92.8%.
The DA is the only party that has grown consistently in every election since 1994, when we won just 1.7% of the vote. Other parties have come and gone, but we keep winning and growing. We are stronger, and bigger, than ever.
This result shows that people's political attitudes are changing; that, more and more, people are moving away from race as a voting determinant. This is encouraging for the future of our democracy.
Over the next few years, we will focus on serving all the people of South Africa. Where we are in opposition, we will continue to hold the government to account. Where we are in government, we will continue to govern well, stop corruption, deliver services to all, and create jobs.
This is a very exciting time for the DA and South Africa. We are on track to achieve our historic mission of realigning politics and unseating the ANC from national government in the next decade.
See below tables of the DA and ANC election performance since 2004.
Table 1: DA national and provincial performance since 2004
|
|
National ballot |
Provincial ballot |
||||
|
Region |
2014 |
2009 |
2004 |
2014 |
2009 |
2004 |
|
South Africa |
22.2% |
16.6% |
12.4% |
22.9% |
16.7% |
12.1% |
|
Eastern Cape |
15.8% |
9.9% |
7.3% |
16.1% |
10.0% |
7.3% |
|
Free State |
16.1% |
12.1% |
8.9% |
16.1% |
11.6% |
8.5% |
|
Gauteng |
28.6% |
21.4% |
20.3% |
30.8% |
22.0% |
20.8% |
|
KwaZulu-Natal |
13.6% |
10.3% |
10.0% |
13.0% |
9.1% |
8.3% |
|
Limpopo |
6.6% |
3.7% |
3.8% |
6.5% |
3.5% |
3.6% |
|
Mpumalanga |
10.0% |
7.6% |
7.2% |
10.4% |
7.5% |
6.9% |
|
North West |
12.6% |
8.9% |
5.5% |
12.6% |
8.5% |
5.0% |
|
Northern Cape |
23.4% |
13.1% |
11.6% |
23.9% |
12.6% |
11.1% |
|
Western Cape |
57.3% |
48.7% |
26.9% |
59.3% |
51.5% |
27.1% |
***
Table 2: ANC national and provincial performance since 2004
|
|
National ballot |
Provincial ballot |
||||
|
Region |
2014 |
2009 |
2004 |
2014 |
2009 |
2004 |
|
South Africa |
62.2% |
65.9% |
69.7% |
61.4% |
65.1% |
69.2% |
|
Eastern Cape |
70.8% |
69.7% |
79.3% |
70.2% |
68.8% |
79.3% |
|
Free State |
69.9% |
71.9% |
82.0% |
70.0% |
71.1% |
81.8% |
|
Gauteng |
55.0% |
64.6% |
68.7% |
53.7% |
63.9% |
68.4% |
|
KwaZulu-Natal |
65.1% |
64.0% |
47.5% |
64.3% |
62.9% |
47.0% |
|
Limpopo |
79.0% |
85.3% |
89.7% |
78.7% |
84.9% |
89.2% |
|
Mpumalanga |
78.8% |
85.8% |
86.3% |
78.2% |
85.5% |
86.3% |
|
North West |
67.8% |
73.9% |
81.8% |
67.4% |
73.0% |
80.7% |
|
Northern Cape |
63.9% |
61.1% |
68.8% |
64.4% |
60.8% |
68.8% |
|
Western Cape |
34.1% |
32.9% |
46.3% |
33.1% |
31.6% |
45.3% |
Statement issued by DA leader, Helen Zille, May 9 2014
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