South African Politics: Parliament, the GNU and Elections
South Africa is a parliamentary democracy with a president elected by the National Assembly rather than directly by voters. That single fact explains most of what is distinctive about its politics: national elections determine the composition of Parliament, and Parliament then chooses the head of state.
The structures
- The National Assembly — 400 members, elected by proportional representation. It elects the President and passes national legislation.
- The National Council of Provinces — 90 delegates, ten from each province, representing provincial interests in national law-making.
- Nine provincial legislatures — each elects a Premier and legislates on provincial competencies such as provincial roads, schools administration and health facilities.
- Two hundred and fifty-seven municipalities — metros, district and local councils, responsible for the services people notice most: water, refuse, local roads and electricity reticulation.
Elections
National and provincial elections run on a five-year cycle. Municipal elections run on their own five-year cycle, offset from the national one. The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) administers all of them.
Municipal by-elections happen continuously, whenever a ward councillor's seat falls vacant. They rarely change national politics, but they are the most reliable public indicator of how party support is actually shifting between general elections, because they measure real votes rather than sampled opinion.
Coalition politics
Since no party won an outright national majority in 2024, national government has been formed by agreement between parties rather than by a single party. The practical consequences are visible week to week: cabinet posts are distributed across parties, legislation needs negotiated support rather than a party whip, and the durability of the arrangement itself becomes a recurring news story.
The same dynamic has been running in metropolitan councils for longer, where coalitions have repeatedly formed, collapsed and re-formed — several metros have changed mayors multiple times inside a single council term.
Where the real decisions surface
Parliamentary portfolio committees do more consequential work than plenary debates, and they are open to the public. The Auditor-General's annual reports on municipal finances, and the Public Protector's investigations, are the two documents that most often turn into the following year's political stories.
Common questions
Who elects the President of South Africa?
The National Assembly, not voters directly. You vote for a party, the party's share determines its seats across the 400-member Assembly, and the Assembly then elects the President. This is why a general election does not immediately produce a named president.
What is the Government of National Unity?
An arrangement where national government is formed by agreement between several parties rather than a single majority party. In practice cabinet posts are distributed across parties and legislation needs negotiated support rather than a party whip, which is why the durability of the arrangement is itself a recurring story.
What is a by-election and does it matter?
A by-election fills a single vacant ward council seat. Individually they rarely change national politics, but collectively they are the most reliable public measure of how party support is actually shifting between general elections, because they count real votes rather than sampled opinion.
Where do the significant decisions actually happen?
Parliamentary portfolio committees do more consequential work than plenary debates, and they are open to the public. The Auditor-General's annual reports on municipal finances are the other document that most often turns into the following year's political stories.
Live coverage
Below, the latest political headlines from South African newsrooms.
