ID elbowing out NNP
2004-04-15 06:26
Johannesburg - Initial results from the national election released early on Thursday morning indicated that the African National Congress (ANC) was heading for an unsurprising victory of near two-thirds of the vote, with 63.77%.
Working off a low base of votes counted at 16%, the official opposition Democratic Alliance, with 19.75%, appears to be faring far more strongly than in the 1999 national election.
The largely KwaZulu-Natal based Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) appears to be confirming its third place with 3.77%.
New party on the block - Patricia de Lille's Independent Democrats (ID) - appears to be edging out the New National Party (NNP) as the fourth biggest party. It was formed early last year.
South Africa's former ruling party - the NNP (previously NP) - was pushed into fifth place with 2.44%, while the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) polled 2.19%. Other parties collectively polled 6%.
Analysts said, however, that the situation is likely to change as more votes are counted.