Jacob Zuma’s MK Party is leading in KwaZulu-Natal. (Tebogo Letsie/City Press/Gallo Images)
There were some visibly dejected faces at the Electoral Commission of South Africa’s (IEC) results operating centre (ROC) in Durban on the first day of counting on Thursday.
On its brightly lit floor, political figures looked disappointed, either by the result or the slow counting pace.
Some smaller parties did not bother showing up, while uMkhonto weSizwe (MKP) delegates appeared to be walking with a spring in their step.
As election results started trickling in on Thursday morning, it was apparent former president Jacob Zuma’s party was the one to beat.
Approached for comment as it became clear the party was steamrolling other parties in the province, ANC spokesperson Mafika Mndebele said it was “too early”.
The KwaZulu-Natal ANC’s leaders were a no-show.
READ | MK Party will not form a coalition with the ANC, says Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla
This despite provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo telling News24 last year about 4 000 activists in eThekwini would help lead the party to victory, and that he would personally be at the ROC to observe the result.
Despite predictions that the ANC was going to lose the province, party president Cyril Ramaphosa told a packed FNB Stadium at the party’s Siyanqoba rally he expected a “good 70%” from KwaZulu-Natal.
Thursday marked the first day of counting after South Africans cast their votes in the general elections on Wednesday.
The formation of the MKP in December 2023 rocked the political landscape and threatened not only the ANC, but also the EFF, IFP and DA.
As anticipated, the MKP is leading in KwaZulu-Natal, unlike in 2019, when the ANC secured the outright majority at 54.22% followed by the IFP (16.34%), DA (13.9%) and EFF (9.71%).
The MKP, which could be the reason why the ANC would find itself on opposition benches in the province, said it was not surprised to find itself at the top on the first day of election results.
The party’s head of programmes in KwaZulu-Natal, Musa Mkhize, said:
We have led since 16 December last year. The MK Party is for the people, it has always been about the people and for the people. President Zuma is and will be for the people, we are just following in his footsteps. We are on the ground and will continue to be.
Mkhize added the party would not entertain any coalition talks, especially from the ANC.
“People have spoken, voted and they trust [the] uMkhonto weSizwe [Party] and Nxamalala [Zuma],” he said.
Cutting a forlorn figure at the ROC, DA provincial leader Francois Rodgers also said it was “too early” to call.
He said he was frustrated by the tardiness of the eThekwini vote count.
“We are concerned about the delay of the results, particularly in eThekwini, and the IEC is not giving us any answers. There are more questions than answers,” Rodgers added.
“As the results come in, I think we’ll get a better understanding. I don’t think our polling has been totally inaccurate. We had predicted the DA, IFP, MK Party and the ANC, and that’s clearly unfolding.”
He said the DA in KwaZulu-Natal had predicted the MKP would get below 40%, the IFP 17%, with the ANC marginally above 20%, which the ANC was sitting at at around 15:00.
“We’re still hopeful for 19% at the end of the day,” Rodgers added.
News24 asked whether an IFP-DA coalition was now a pipe dream as the MKP steamrollered the big political players in the province, he said:
It’s definitely thrown a totally a new dynamic on to what’s going to happen after the election, and I think until the results are in, we’re not going to speculate as to how we’re going to go forward.
EFF provincial chairperson Mongezi Twala refused to be drawn into responding to questions about the MKP seemingly running away with the province.
In a previous interview, Twala boldly told News24 the EFF had trained their sights on attaining one million votes in KwaZulu-Natal. But by 20:00 on Thursday, the party was sitting at just over 12 000 votes.
Twala was asked about the EFF’s ambitions.
READ | ‘No room for sellouts’: EFF aims to win 2 million votes in Gauteng and KZN
He said: “So far, so good. We’ve just heard the news of wards in eThekwini, Newcastle and other areas that have performed really well. We are still hopeful. It’s still early. We are still looking [for a] growing trajectory.”
Commenting on the possibility of a coalition with the ANC and/or MKP, Twala added the party would first get a mandate from party supporters before committing to coalitions, which would only be with “progressive forces that will be one with our people”.
Earlier this year, the EFF booted former MP Vusi Khoza after failing to bus in constituents for a rally.
Twala dismissed the idea Khoza’s axing might have led to a poor showing, saying campaigning was a collective effort.
He added:
Vusi Khoza can’t be in 4 000 voting districts of the EFF. We have a serious battalion on the ground.
IFP secretary-general Siphosethu Ngcobo added it was too early to comment on the numbers as “anything could happen”.
“We will do better than what you see. We are certainly expecting the numbers to climb. We know for a fact that we have secured the northern part of KwaZulu-Natal.”
Looking at the ANC’s performance, Ngcobo said: “I always try to be cautious and steady but honestly speaking, one would have to look at the dynamics as we speak. I know that if they can beat us, we can beat them. We are currently neck and neck.”
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