AS the first results come in from the Free State, the African National Congress, predictably has taken a firm lead with 70% of the votes counted thus far. The surprise is in the Democratic Party having around a 1% lead over the New National Party’s 7%. The Freedom Front is running a close third. Extremely tentative and wildly fluctuating national figures have the ANC at approximately 56%, the NP at 16% and the DP at 8%.