Independent Candidate Calls for Change Ahead of South Africa’s May 29 Elections

JOHANNESBURG — As South Africa prepares for elections on May 29, independent candidate Anele Mda is calling for profound change in the country's politics.

“There is literally no South African who needs to be convinced why we need to change. There isn't, not one,” Mda told the Associated Press on Thursday.

Mda was direct in her critique of the current political landscape, particularly targeting the ruling African National Congress (ANC) and its supporters.

“A person who's voting the ANC, it's a person who is an accomplice, who has taken a stand of declaring themselves an accomplice to the rot that is happening,” she said, referring to the numerous corruption allegations against the party.

Mda highlighted the scandal involving ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa, who was accused of hiding up to $4 million at his farm before it was stolen in 2020. Although Ramaphosa was cleared of wrongdoing last year by a public watchdog, Mda called the decision a "travesty of justice."

“And they still have an opportunity to put him with his big face on posters and beg people to vote for such a corrupt, incorrigible man,” Mda said.

While South Africa is considered one of Africa’s most advanced countries, it faces stark contradictions. Unemployment and poverty remain pressing issues for the majority of the population. The African National Congress, once led by Nelson Mandela, has been in power since the end of apartheid in 1994. However, the party’s support has waned due to poverty, failing government services, and a national unemployment rate of over 32%, predominantly affecting the Black majority.

Recent polls show support for the ANC below 50%—with some polls indicating as low as 40%—suggesting that the party may be in danger of losing its parliamentary majority for the first time in the upcoming elections.

This year, a record 70 political parties are registered for the vote, and for the first time, independent candidates will be allowed to stand. Mda and other independents are hoping to capitalize on the growing discontent and bring about meaningful change in South Africa’s political landscape.