A landmark as South Africa’s ANC dips below 50% support

By GERALD IMRAY
Associated Press

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — South Africa’s ruling African National Congress party has received less than 50% of votes in nationwide elections for the first time. The final results of Monday’s local government elections were announced Thursday night and saw the ANC win 46% of votes. The elections decided the makeup of councils that run towns and cities. The ANC remained the largest party but more South Africans voted for other parties in an unprecedented shift. It confirmed the declining popularity of the organization once led by Nelson Mandela. The ANC has governed since the end of apartheid in 1994 but political analyst Angelo Fick says South Africans “can imagine a situation beyond the ANC” for the first time.