Rise Mzansi leader Songezo Zibi is confident that his party will have representation in the provincial and national legislature. It is only the extent of that representation, he said, that is yet to be determined when votes are tallied.
The former newspaper editor cast his vote at midday in Centurion after four hours of shuffling to get to the corner of Rooihuiskraal and Lever Roads.
He was one of the 336,400 voters who wre expected to mark their “X” at the voting station on Wednesday.
A force to be reckoned with
Zibi said Rise Mzansi had two objectives for its first year of existence, which he added that the party will achieve.
“One was to become a national organisation that is a force to be reckoned with. Also to be recognised by many people. This because it’s very difficult to have an impact in politics if people don’t know who you are. [Rise Mzansi is] known in all nine provinces. We managed to get on the ballot in all nine provinces.
“Two is to make sure that we have representatives in legislatures and parliament. If we can do that, then we get a chance to show South Africans what we do when we get elected. [We can also] build on it for 2026 and 2029. I’m confident that we’ll be able to achieve both objectives.
“I don’t know to what extent in each province. Because South Africans are not in the habit of declaring who they are going to vote for,” he said. He added that 35% of people in the past week had not decided who they will give their vote to.
“That’s a big number. A margin of error is usually 2% to 3%,” said the former newspaper editor.
Swinging undecided voters
Zibi said Rise Mzansi, more than any political party, has the best chance of swinging undecided voters.
His spirits were not dampened by the snail-pace of the voting process under the scorching Tshwane sun. A visibly exhausted Zibi was all smiles after casting his vote, but also emotional.
“Getting here is tough. We have thousands of people who have been working every day, not sleeping. [They were] walking kilometres a day and talking to people, convincing them to be part of Rise Mzansi. I’m proud of those people.
Tribute to party volunteers and organisers
“My vote today is more of a tribute to Rise Mzansi volunteers and organisers more than anyone. The leadership works, but the volunteers and organisers – those are the guys,” he said.
Zibi said he was looking forward to getting some rest. Then he will head to the National Results Operations Centre at the Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand.
“I’ll go and watch paint dry at The Rock while the results trickle in. We will see if that’s perhaps more exciting than campaigning,” he said.
Voting began late at 7.38am at the tent situated a few hundred metres from the Blue Valley Golf Estate. Voters took an average of three hours to get inside the tent to vote.
