The next general election is six to seven months away, but government actions and party political debates seem to have already moved into election mode. In terms of the Constitution and electoral legislation, South Africa should have its next general and provincial elections in May 2024 in terms of the amended Electoral Act.
The foremost implication of the new Electoral Amendment Act 1 of 2023 is that independent candidates can now participate in the national election for both the National Assembly and provincial legislatures. In the case of the National Assembly, they will contest in the provincial lists (200 out of 400 members of Parliament).
The context in which the election is going to take place will be influenced by several very important issues and developments, such as the inability of the economy to grow at levels higher than 0,5% since state capture and COVID-19, resulting in high unemployment, rising inflation and higher interest rates.
Other factors are the intensification and cost of load-shedding due to the mismanagement of Eskom; cost-of-living challenges due to the impact of the war in Ukraine; and price increases linked to food security in general. In addition, the crisis at Transnet has had a major impact on the poor performance of the economy.
A trust deficit has developed between the citizenry and the ruling ANC, resulting in low polling numbers.
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