While the IFP demonstrated its strength and potential for victory in KwaZulu-Natal ahead of the provincial and national elections by seizing an ANC ward in Newcastle and keeping Ward 2 in uPhongolo, the uMkhonto weSizwe party (MKP) was the one making news.
After collecting 595 votes, the ANC’s splinter grouping performed admirably in uPhongolo Ward 2, garnering 28% of the vote share.
According to the results, the new political party received support from ANC and IFP supporters.
A week ago, the political formation led by former president Jacob Zuma achieved an astonishing result in its first election, garnering 19% in Vryheid under the Abaqulusi local municipality.
The IFP won the support of the voters in Wednesday’s by-elections held in uPhongolo’s Ncotshane location.
Many voters shun the EFF
The IFP achieved 890 of the ward votes, while the ANC came in second with 687 votes, and the EFF only managed 52 votes.
Meanwhile, in Osizweni, under the Newcastle local municipality, the ANC was hammered by its traditional political foe, the IFP.
The ANC had won the ward in the 2021 municipal elections but was dealt a heavy blow when the elected councillor resigned to take up a full-time post with the IFP-led Newcastle municipality.
The MKP decided against contesting the ward.
Nhlamulo Ndhlela, MK Party spokesperson, said the outcome of the uPhongolo and Abaqulusi was enough evidence that the people yearn for the MKP government.
“We are very excited by the outcomes. This is a clear indication that the people want change, and they only believe in the MKP to bring that change,” Ndhlela said.
“The most important thing is that the people who voted in Ward 2 were mostly youth.”
After winning consecutive by-elections, the IFP, which has been on the rise since 2021, claimed that the most recent by-elections demonstrated that voters still consider it to be an option.
Poll puts MKP on par with the ANC
IFP provincial chairperson Thamsanqa Ntuli remarked: “These outcomes reflect and affirm the enduring trust and confidence that the people of KZN place in the IFP.
“The overwhelming support received in these by-elections serves as a strong indication of the electorate’s endorsement of the IFP’s vision and leadership.”
The latest polling data from the Social Research Foundation, which places the Zuma party on par with the ANC, his old home, with 24% of the vote share, gives the MKP hope.
The ANC is expected to fall to 25%, a staggering 29% decrease from the 54% the party received in the 2019 general elections.
Additionally, according to the poll, the DA is predicted to receive 15% of the vote, a mere 1% increase from what it received in 2019, while the IFP is predicted to soar from the 16% it received in the previous elections to 24%.
