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Supporters of South Africa’s main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), sing and dance at the launch of the party’s canvassing drive in Crossroads, Cape Town, 08 February 2004, a day after the DA launched its election campaign vowing to prevent a ‘one party state’ ruled by the African National Congress (ANC) by creating a ‘real multi-party democracy’. South African president Thabo Mbeki is due to announce the date of the 2004 general elections in parliament 09 February. AFP PHOTO/ANNA ZIEMINSKI

From the 2004 M&G election archives

Twenty years ago, our analyst wrote that the ANC had not erred catastrophically enough in government to give the opposition a foot in the door

  • Des Erasmus
7 min read