The African National Congress (ANC) has lost its parliamentary majority in a historic election result that South Africa on a new political path for the first time since the end apartheid.

A dramatically weakened mandate for the old party of Nelson Mandelaa decline from the 57.5 percent it received in the last general election in 2019, means the ANC will have to share power with a rival to retain it – an unprecedented prospect.

“We can talk to anyone,” Gwede Mantashe, the ANC leader and current minister of mines and energy, told reporters in comments broadcast by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), dodging a question about who the party is negotiating with over a possible coalition agreement.

The counting of Wednesday's votes entered its final phase on Saturday. The results came in from 99.53 percent of polling stations, with the ANC receiving 40.21 percent of the votes.

The main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), received 21.80 percent, uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK), a new party led by former President Jacob Zuma, won 14.60 percent, while the left-wing radical Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) led by former ANC youth leader Julius Malema received 9.48 percent.

“We have achieved our mission: … to bring the ANC below 50 percent. We want to humiliate the ANC,” Malema told journalists at the results centre.

“We will negotiate a possible coalition agreement with the ANC,” he said, although with the current vote count this would not quite be enough to achieve a majority without involving another party.

The ANC has overwhelmingly won every national election since the historic 1994 vote that ended white minority rule, but over the past decade its support has dwindled due to a stagnant economy, rising unemployment and the deterioration of roads and power stations.

The MK's strong performance, particularly in Zuma's home province of KwaZulu-Natal, is one of the main reasons why the ANC failed to gain a majority.

Analysts say one option for the ANC could be a “government of national unity” involving a broad spectrum of many parties, rather than a formal coalition between a few – a similar form to that which emerged after the historic all-race election in 1994.

Mr Malema said the EFF was against the idea and preferred to be part of a coalition.

The share of votes received by political parties determines their seats in the National Assembly, which elects the country's president.

Investors in Africa's most industrialized economy are hoping that the uncertain picture will clear up quickly and that the country will be spared a prolonged period of strife if key political players cannot agree on a solution for cooperation.

Some parties have questioned alleged discrepancies in the vote count that could lead to the contestation of certain results.

Electoral Commission Chairman Mosotho Moepya told a press conference on Saturday: “Every reservation expressed in these objections will be taken into account and we will do so carefully.”

Meanwhile, ANC First Deputy Secretary General Nomvula Mokonyane called on voters and communities to remain peaceful.

Despite the ANC's election result, President Cyril Ramaphosa could remain in office, as the former liberation movement is expected to receive about twice as many votes as the next party. However, he would be weakened and could face calls to resign from both opposition parties and critics in the deeply divided ANC.

However, on Friday Ms Mokonyane – one of the ANC's most senior officials – spoke out in favour of him remaining as party leader, and analysts say there is no obvious successor to him.

A deal to keep the ANC in the presidency could involve supporting the opposition in exchange for cabinet posts or greater control of parliament or perhaps even the speaker.

“One of the positions we will demand from the ANC is … that of Speaker of Parliament,” Malema said.

The electoral commission has scheduled the announcement of the final results for Sunday.

Reuters