We can make history tomorrow. But we can't do it without you

A message to all South Africans:

When you enter the polling booth tomorrow, you will vote for the party you want to govern your town or city. The choice you make will have a profound impact on your life and the future of your country.

It will determine whether basic services like electricity, clean water and sanitation are delivered. And it will determine whether the local economy grows or declines, whether jobs are created or destroyed.

It is the choice between success and failure.

How you vote will also determine whether we unite around the vision of Nelson Mandela, to which the DA is committed, or whether we allow ourselves to be divided along race lines, as the ANC has done in this election.

It is the choice between unity and division.

People across South Africa are rejecting service delivery failure and racial division. Instead, they are choosing success and unity. They are choosing the DA.

This means we could see a change in government in many towns and cities across the country. These include the major urban centres of Johannesburg, Tshwane and Nelson Mandela Bay.

In Cape Town, we have a chance to win the election with an outright majority. This will mean more stability and an even greater focus on delivery to all, especially the poor.

None of these outcomes are a foregone conclusion. We can only win if everybody who wants change comes out to vote for the DA tomorrow. Every single vote will count.

We can make history in this election. But we can't do it without you. This is your moment. You can choose five years of corruption, inefficiency, poor service delivery and economic decline. Or you can choose the DA. It is up to you. 

Statement issued by Helen Zille, Leader of the Democratic Alliance, May 17 2011

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