The African National Congress was leading the race in eight of the nine provinces late on Thursday morning while the ruling party has also increased its lead over the Democratic Alliance in the national race.
At 11am the ANC had received three-million votes and led the national pack with 64,97% of the vote. The DA was in second place with 17,9% and the Congress of the People (Cope) had garnered 7,75% of the national vote.
The Inkatha Freedom Party was reeling at 2,75% of the national vote, while the United Democratic Movement (1,25%) struggled to reach the 2% mark it achieved in 2004.
On 1,59% Patricia de Lille’s Independent Democrats looked set to match its 2004 result (1,73%).
In the provincial races, the ANC was way ahead in eight provinces, with the DA still leaping ahead in the Western Cape with 53% of the vote against the ANC’s 28%. However, 1,7-million votes out of a maximum of 2,6-million were still outstanding.
In KwaZulu-Natal the ANC led with 61% against the IFP’s 24%.
Cope has not yet made a major impact in the Eastern Cape — considered to be the party’s stronghold. The party has garnered 11,5% of the province’s votes, while the ANC was safely in the lead with 73%.
- In the Free State the ANC was leading with 72% against the DA’s 11,6%;
- In Gauteng the ANC was in front with 62,7% against the DA’s 24%;
- In Limpopo the ANC had gathered 85% of the vote with Cope’s 7% in second place;
- In Mpumalanga the ANC was in front with 83,5% with the DA in second place (9,2%);
- In the North West the ANC was standing on 72,8% with the DA on 9,5%, and
- In the Northern Cape the ANC had garnered 57,8% against Cope’s 18,7%.