Cyril Ramaphosa has been re-elected President of South Africa, securing a second term after the ruling African National Congress (ANC) struck a controversial coalition pact with opposition parties.
In a historic first for South Africa’s young democracy, Ramaphosa, 71, won 283 votes from lawmakers in the National Assembly on Friday, comfortably defeating his sole challenger Julius Malema of the Economic Freedom Fighters party who received 44 votes.
The ANC fell well short of an outright parliamentary majority in last month’s general elections, forcing it to broker deals with smaller parties to stay in power.
The new government of national unity combines Mr Ramaphosa’s ANC, the centre-right Democratic Alliance (DA) and smaller parties.
Addressing South Africa’s parliament after his confirmation, Mr Ramaphosa called back to his party’s first presidential victory 30 years ago.
“We have been here before, we were here in 1994, when we sought to unite our country and to effect reconciliation – and we are here now,” he said.
A key alliance was a coalition agreement with the he centre-right Democratic Alliance (DA), formerly the ANC’s main opposition rival, with the DA making Ramaphosa’s re-election a condition of its support.
Earlier, DA leader John Steenhuisen said that the party will now co-govern South Africa in the spirit of unity and collaboration.
“This is a new era of cooperation and unity for the betterment of all South Africans,” said DA leader John Steenhuisen as he announced backing Ramaphosa, despite years of bitter political feuding between the two parties.
The DA and its predecessors historically served as a pro-market, anti-corruption counterweight to the ANC. But it justified allying with its long-time foe to prevent political paralysis after the uncertain election results.
However, the DA’s decision sparked a backlash from some supporters who accused it of betraying core principles for a share of cabinet positions in Ramaphosa’s new government.
Earlier, a deal was struck following weeks of speculation about whom the ANC would partner with after losing its parliamentary majority for the first time in 30 years in last month’s elections.
For the ANC, the coalition deals secure a second term for Ramaphosa to pursue reforms reviving South Africa’s stagnant economy, tackle endemic corruption, and rebuild failing public services.
But governing will require keeping together an ideologically diverse alliance skeptical of the ANC’s recent policy direction under former president Jacob Zuma.
In a calibrated acceptance speech, Ramaphosa acknowledged the “work ahead” while vowing ethical leadership and service delivery through “this new relationship of cooperation and compromise.”
As president-elect, Ramaphosa must now be inaugurated within five days before appointing a new cabinet of ministers to execute his policy agenda.
His re-election came during an inaugural parliamentary session held at a convention center, after a 2022 fire gutted the National Assembly’s chamber buildings.
“The President-elect will be inaugurated during a ceremony in Pretoria which, according to the Constitution, should take place within five days after the President’s election, according to a statement by the South African Parliament.
While the ANC continues its 29-year control of South Africa’s young democracy, its former foes will determine whether Ramaphosa’s second term remedies the unemployment, power blackouts and graft allegations that fueled voter discontent.
The election outcome exposed waning public faith in the ANC’s ability to resolve stubborn economic and social challenges nearly three decades after the party ushered in multi-racial democracy.
The next step is for Mr Ramaphosa to allocate cabinet positions, which will include members of the DA.
Whether the fragile coalition of rivals can hold and translate Ramaphosa’s renewed reform promises into reality will be an early litmus test for South Africa’s new era of partnership politics.
