2004 South African general election
Legislative elections were held in South Africa on Wednesday, 14 april 2004. The African National Congress (ANC) of President Thabo Mbeki, which has been in power since the end of the apartheid system in 1994, was re-elected with an increased majority.
These were the third free elections held since the end of the apartheid era. The South African National Assembly consists of 400 members, elected by proportional representation. Two hundred members are elected from national party lists, the other 200 are elected from party lists in each of the nine provinces. The President of South Africa is chosen by the National Assembly after each election.
Parties
- The African National Congress has been in power since 1994. At the 1999 elections it gained 66.4% of the vote and 266 seats.
- The Democratic Alliance led by Tony Leon, is the main opposition party. In 1999, as the Democratic Party, it won 9.6% of the vote and 38 seats.
- The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) is a Zulu party led by Mangosuthu Buthelezi
- The New National Party (NNP), a descendant of the ruling party of the apartheid era, led by Marthinus van Schalkwyk, is now an ally of the ANC.
- The Independent Democrats, is a new party led by Patricia De Lille.
Final results
| Party | Votes | % | Change | Seats | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| African National Congress | 10,878,251 | 69.7 | +3.3 | 279 | +13 |
| Democratic Alliance | 1,931,201 | 12.4 | +2.8 | 50 | +12 |
| Inkatha Freedom Party | 1,088,664 | 7.0 | -1.6 | 28 | -6 |
| United Democratic Movement | 355,717 | 2.3 | -1.1 | 9 | -5 |
| Independent Democrats | 269,765 | 1.7 | +1.7 | 7 | +7 |
| New National Party | 257,824 | 1.7 | -5.2 | 7 | -21 |
| African Christian Democratic Party | 250,272 | 1.6 | +0.2 | 6 | - |
| Others | 580,973 | 3.7 | -0.1 | 14 | - |
| Total | 15,612,667 | 100.0 | - | 400 | - |
As the counting progressed, the ANC's share of the vote rose, and the Democratic Alliance's share fell. This is because the vote-count proceeded more slowly in poor rural areas where the ANC polls extremely strongly. For the same reason the IFP's vote rose in the late counting, since the rural areas of KwaZulu-Natal were slow to report their results.
Twelve political parties are represented in the new National Assembly: the ANC, the Democratic Alliance, the IFP, the United Democratic Movement, the Independent Democrats, the NNP, the African Christian Democratic Party, the Freedom Front Plus, the United Christian Democratic Party, the Pan Africanist Congress, the Minority Front and the Azanian People's Organisation.