thoughtleader elections 2024latest news & developments
Term two: Chief Justice Raymond Zondo (left) and President Cyril Ramaphosa (right) at the latter’s inauguration on Wednesday. The author says the next five years will be a new test for the ANC. Photo: Delwyn Verasamy

The ANC in coalition is nothing new

The party has a long history of deal-making and alliances. The DA and other partners in the GNU are new bedfellows but the ANC owes much of its historic success to its open-mattress policy

The EFF at their manifesto launch earlier this year. (Photo by Darren Stewart/Gallo Images via Getty Images)

Will socialism work in South Africa?

Unless South Africans see a direct improvement to their livelihoods, it will result in civil unrest

Scenes from the National Results Operations Centre in Midrand, Gauteng. Numerous political leaders, media and government officials are present to watch the results come in on 30 May 2024.
(Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)

2024 elections results: Making sense of this moment

It’s time for leaders to lead and to come up with solutions to the problems that beset South Africans

Jacob Zuma’s MK party were the big winners in this year’s elections. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)

South African election exposes the pitfalls of neoliberalism

Populist parties have made considerable gains in the wake of the government’s insecurity-inducing economic policies

The message has always been attractive to African people, who had for more than 300 years suffered social, economic and political marginalisation and injustice under colonialism and apartheid.
 (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)

A new national vision is now urgent – and it’s up to the ANC left

As the liberal establishment and the kleptocratic nationalists in and outside of the ANC both see a moment of political possibility for themselves it is the left in the ANC that must now step up

Thanasagren Moodley was the highest performing independent candidate with about 12 000 votes. (Suntosh Pillay/X)

Why independent candidates did not perform well in the 2024 elections

South Africa needs to develop strategies and systems to support independents on their electoral journey

ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula. (Photo by Per-Anders Pettersson/Getty Images)

Korner Talk | Fikile Mbalula ‘is a certified clown’

The ANC secretary general should join the ‘Takalani Sesame’ cast and leave politics

MK party leader Jacob Zuma. (Photo by Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)

‘Friends’ of Jacob Zuma

Saturday’s spectacle was a shameful episode for which we all bear responsibility

With the ANC failing to win the majority of votes, a national coalition will now govern South Africa. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Ensuring stability and accountability during the coalitions era

The failure of coalitions in metros demonstrates the need for transparent and publicly available agreements

Scenes from the National Results Operations Centre in Midrand, Gauteng. Numerous political leaders, media and government officials are present to watch the results come in on 30 May 2024.
(Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)

Elections 2024: Leadership at a time of seizmic political change

The hand of history will be weighing heavily on the shoulders of South Africa’s political leaders in the coming hours and days

Eskom is inadvertently helping drive the global sustainable energy movement by rapidly pricing South Africans out of the grid energy market.  Photo: Waldo Swiegers/Getty Images

Vote for a just energy plan with enduring solutions

South Africa needs a leadership that comprehends the interconnectedness of our nation’s energy crisis and the climate emergency

Graphic: John McCann/M&G

Should money be a ‘form of speech’ in politics?

Permitting political parties to receive donations of unlimited amounts and from undisclosed sources exposes the government and its democratic values to corruption

The Political Party Funding Act requires parties to disclose donations above a certain threshold but it falls short of mandating transparency on expenditure. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)

Relationship between money and politics a threat to SA’s democracy

The Electoral Matters Amendment Act was created to enable independent candidates to contest the elections, but it has eroded the Political Party Funding Act

Subsidies’ value: Workers on the assembly line at Toyota’s manufacturing plant in Durban. The vehicle sector employs 120  000 people and contributes 6.4% to GDP. Photo: Waldo Swiegers/Getty Images

Democratic Alliance’s economic policy is a direct attack on the working class

If it ruled, the party’s promotion of rightist free market fundamentalism would see industries such as vehicle manufacturing being destroyed

Jacob Zuma’s MK party were the big winners in this year’s elections. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)

Zuma’s election antics are wild, even by South Africa’s standards

The door-to-doors have door-to-doored and now it’s all over – except for the voting

(Graphic: John McCann/M&G)

Adaptability trumps answers in these elections

We must ponder how we might be inspired by Africa Day to use creativity techniques in, and after, this election to create a better South Africa.

People’s power: Voters wait at a polling station outside the hostels in Umlazi, Durban. Voting remains critical to bring about the change desired. Photo: Marco Longari/AFP

Editorial: Vote with your head this year

We can’t tell you who to vote for — or even any party to vote against. Arriving at a considered decision is your democratic duty

South Africans need to be better informed about democracy and become active citizens. (John McCann/M&G)

Why the government and political parties will still be corrupt after the 29 May elections

South Africans need to be better informed about democracy and become active citizens

Relative wealth: Business person Patrice Motsepe, who is also the brother-in-law of President Cyril Ramaphosa, is one of the country’s biggest donors to political parties. Photo: Sebastian Frej/Getty Images

Money seeks a bedfellow and we need to know who’s sleeping with who

Despite all the shiny new legislation, don’t think that party funding issues have disappeared

(Graphic: John McCann/M&G)

It’s been a wild ride since 1994, but South Africans must keep on voting

Beyond elections, active citizenship is needed. Voting is just one way to take responsibility for the outcomes of our democracy