Post-Apartheid South Africa has seen only one party rule. For 50 years since the famous Rivonia Treason Trial and ANC party members being sentenced for life imprisonment, this is now the only party to have a president in the fully democratic South Africa.

Jacob Zuma, the current ANC president, whilst unpopular enough to be jeered at during Mandela’s funeral, was voted in over six months later. Yet why does an unpopular president stay in power- isn’t democracy there to stop this from happening?

One of the main reasons why Zuma and the ANC remain in power is because there are no other alternatives. With 73.5 percent of South Africans voting and 62 percent of these votes for the ANC, the ANC will continue to dominate.

The other parties in South Africa did not end apartheid and they did not have Mandela as the head of their party. The ANC has free ridden on this popularity since 1996 and whilst other parties took part the ANC is the only party to be profiting from it.

The closest party to the lead is Defence Alliance, which was part of the anti-apartheid movement but is not glorified in the history books. The DA accused Zuma, in the 2009 elections of corruption but these charges were squashed and the voters gave them a record amount of votes.

The 2014 election was aimed to be the re-initiation of the opposition but with the disagreement between Anang South Africa’s black Mamphela Ramphele and DA’s white Helen Zille that showed the world how race in South Africa is still a problem. When the opposition had a chance to stand up against this problem they folded.

When South Africans are frustrated with the minimal level of improvements in the Free State there seems to be no option for the country with only one party being able to get into power.

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