South African general election, 1953
Encyclopedia
The 1953 South African general election consolidated the position of the National Party
under DF Malan, who won an absolute majority of the 156 seats in the House of Assembly
. The United Party under JGN Strauss lost several seats, and suffered several splits after the election.
The three representative seats were filled by elections on 17 November 1948. Two Independent MPs (W.H. Stuart of Transkeian Territories and Mrs V.M.L. Ballinger
of Cape Eastern) were returned. The third seat was taken by Sam Kahn
, a South African Communist Party
member, who gained the seat from an Independent.
The term of these members expired on 30 June 1954 (the first 30 June to fall after five years from the date of election).
The Communist Party dissolved itself (at least as an open political party) when legislation to ban it was going through Parliament in 1950. Sam Kahn was ultimately banned from being a member of Parliament, in 1952, under the anti Communist legislation. Subsequently two successive by-elections were held in Cape Western, but the victors had similar views to Mr Kahn and were also excluded from Parliament. The seat was then left vacant for the remainder of the term.
s on 31 August 1950. The governing National Party won all the seats, which were additional to the 150 general roll seats allocated to the Union of South Africa.
had provided for a delimitation commission to define the boundaries for each electoral division. The representation by province, under the tenth delimitation report of 1953, is set out in the table below. The figures in brackets are the number of electoral divisions in the previous (1947) delimitation. If there is no figure in brackets then the number was unchanged.
The above table does not include the three native representative seats in Cape Province nor the six South-West African divisions, which were not included in the delimitation of the general roll seats for the Union under the South Africa Act 1909.
The general election, on 15 April 1953, only affected the representatives of general roll voters. From 1938 the Native Representative Members had fixed terms and were elected on a different date.
The overall composition of the House, set out by province before the general election, was as below.
Abbrieviations in the province list.
Note: The NRM seat, formerly held by the Communist Party, is listed as Independent in the above table. Sam Kahn and his two successors, after the Communist Party dissolved its public organisation and went underground, all claimed to be Independents.
. The merged party was named the National Party (NP). The government had also strengthened its political position, by conferring six parliamentary seats upon the white population of the territory of South West Africa.
The principal opposition party was the United Party (UP). Since the previous general election, in 1948, the UPs veteran leader Field Marshal Jan Smuts
had died. The new Leader of the Opposition was J.G.N. Strauss.
The other parliamentary opposition party was the Labour Party. In 1953, the United Party and the Labour Party had an electoral pact, for the third successive general election.
During the campaign, the Labour leader John Christie died. His seat was consequently contested at a by election after the normal day of the general election poll. It was retained by a new Labour candidate and is included in the totals for the results section of this article,
The NP promoted its policy of apartheid' Dr Malan suggested that the white voters could unite around the Nationalist programme. The UP criticised the idea of apartheid as impractical. Mr Strauss campaigned alleging that the first task of a South African government should be the suppression of Native criminals, who created insecurity in the cities. United Party supporters were optimistic on the eve of the poll.
The total registered electorate was 1,385,591. The votes cast were 1,218,631 (including 8,709 spoilt votes).
The overall composition of the House, set out by province after the general election, was as below. There were boundary changes, from the delimitation of seats in the previous Parliament, so no attempt is made to identify changes.
National Party (South Africa)
The National Party is a former political party in South Africa. Founded in 1914, it was the governing party of the country from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994. Members of the National Party were sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats. Its policies included apartheid, the establishment of a...
under DF Malan, who won an absolute majority of the 156 seats in the House of Assembly
House of Assembly of South Africa
The House of Assembly was the lower house of the Parliament of South Africa from 1910 to 1984, and latterly the white representative house of the Tricameral Parliament from 1984 to 1994, when it was replaced by the current National Assembly...
. The United Party under JGN Strauss lost several seats, and suffered several splits after the election.
Native representative members
The second term of the (white MPs) elected to represent black voters, from special electoral districts in Cape Province under the Representation of Natives Act 1936, expired on 30 June 1948 (just over a month after the National Party came to power in the 1948 general election). These seats were not vacated by a dissolution of Parliament, so they were not contested at either the 1948 or 1953 general elections.The three representative seats were filled by elections on 17 November 1948. Two Independent MPs (W.H. Stuart of Transkeian Territories and Mrs V.M.L. Ballinger
Margaret Ballinger
Margaret Ballinger was the first President of the Liberal Party of South Africa and a South African Member of Parliament. In 1944, Ballinger was referred to as the "Queen of the Blacks" by TIME magazine...
of Cape Eastern) were returned. The third seat was taken by Sam Kahn
Sam Kahn
Sam Kahn was a South African Communist and MP from 1949 to 1952, for one of the constituencies representing African voters. Born in Cape Town, he joined the Communist Party of South Africa and earned a LLB degree from the University of Cape Town in 1932...
, a South African Communist Party
South African Communist Party
South African Communist Party is a political party in South Africa. It was founded in 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa by the joining together of the International Socialist League and others under the leadership of Willam H...
member, who gained the seat from an Independent.
The term of these members expired on 30 June 1954 (the first 30 June to fall after five years from the date of election).
The Communist Party dissolved itself (at least as an open political party) when legislation to ban it was going through Parliament in 1950. Sam Kahn was ultimately banned from being a member of Parliament, in 1952, under the anti Communist legislation. Subsequently two successive by-elections were held in Cape Western, but the victors had similar views to Mr Kahn and were also excluded from Parliament. The seat was then left vacant for the remainder of the term.
South-West Africa
The white electors of the territory of South-West Africa, were allocated six seats in the House of Assembly. These new electoral divisions were first filled at by-electionBy-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
s on 31 August 1950. The governing National Party won all the seats, which were additional to the 150 general roll seats allocated to the Union of South Africa.
Delimitation of electoral divisions
The South Africa Act 1909South Africa Act 1909
The South Africa Act 1909 was an Act of the British Parliament which created the Union of South Africa from the British Colonies of the Cape of Good Hope, Natal, Orange River Colony, and the Transvaal Colony. The Act also made provisions for admitting Rhodesia as a fifth province of the Union in...
had provided for a delimitation commission to define the boundaries for each electoral division. The representation by province, under the tenth delimitation report of 1953, is set out in the table below. The figures in brackets are the number of electoral divisions in the previous (1947) delimitation. If there is no figure in brackets then the number was unchanged.
| Provinces | Cape | Natal | Orange Free State | Transvaal | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divisions | 54 (55) | 15 (16) | 13 | 68 (66) | 150 |
The above table does not include the three native representative seats in Cape Province nor the six South-West African divisions, which were not included in the delimitation of the general roll seats for the Union under the South Africa Act 1909.
Position at the dissolution
At the end of the 10th Union Parliament, when it was dissolved in 1953, the House of Assembly consisted of two groups of members. General roll voters (white voters from the whole Union and South-West Africa and coloured electors in Cape Province and Natal) were represented by 156 members. Black voters in Cape Province were represented by three white MPs, known at the time as Native Representative Members (NRM).The general election, on 15 April 1953, only affected the representatives of general roll voters. From 1938 the Native Representative Members had fixed terms and were elected on a different date.
The overall composition of the House, set out by province before the general election, was as below.
| Province | National | United | Labour | Independent | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cape (general) | 28 | 27 | - | - | 55 |
| Cape (NRM) | - | - | - | 3 | 3 |
| Natal | 3 | 11 | 2 | - | 16 |
| Orange FS | 12 | 1 | - | - | 13 |
| SW Africa | 6 | - | - | - | 6 |
| Transvaal | 37 | 25 | 4 | - | 66 |
| Total | 86 | 64 | 6 | 3 | 159 |
Abbrieviations in the province list.
- Orange FS: Orange Free State
- SW Africa: South-West Africa
- NRM: Native Representative Members
Note: The NRM seat, formerly held by the Communist Party, is listed as Independent in the above table. Sam Kahn and his two successors, after the Communist Party dissolved its public organisation and went underground, all claimed to be Independents.
Campaign
Since the 1948 general election Dr Malan's Reunited National Party had merged with its coalition partner, the Afrikaner PartyAfrikaner Party
The Afrikaner Party was a South African political party from 1941 to 1951.-Origins:The roots of the party can be traced back September 1939, when South Africa declared war on Germany at the start of World War II. General J.B.M...
. The merged party was named the National Party (NP). The government had also strengthened its political position, by conferring six parliamentary seats upon the white population of the territory of South West Africa.
The principal opposition party was the United Party (UP). Since the previous general election, in 1948, the UPs veteran leader Field Marshal Jan Smuts
Jan Smuts
Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, ED, KC, FRS, PC was a prominent South African and British Commonwealth statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various cabinet posts, he served as Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1919 until 1924 and from 1939 until 1948...
had died. The new Leader of the Opposition was J.G.N. Strauss.
The other parliamentary opposition party was the Labour Party. In 1953, the United Party and the Labour Party had an electoral pact, for the third successive general election.
During the campaign, the Labour leader John Christie died. His seat was consequently contested at a by election after the normal day of the general election poll. It was retained by a new Labour candidate and is included in the totals for the results section of this article,
The NP promoted its policy of apartheid' Dr Malan suggested that the white voters could unite around the Nationalist programme. The UP criticised the idea of apartheid as impractical. Mr Strauss campaigned alleging that the first task of a South African government should be the suppression of Native criminals, who created insecurity in the cities. United Party supporters were optimistic on the eve of the poll.
Results
The vote totals in the table below may not give a complete picture of the balance of political opinion, because of unopposed elections (where no votes were cast) and because contested seats may not have been fought by a candidate from all major parties.The total registered electorate was 1,385,591. The votes cast were 1,218,631 (including 8,709 spoilt votes).
| Party | Seats | Seats % | Votes | Votes % | Leader | |
| National Party National Party (South Africa) The National Party is a former political party in South Africa. Founded in 1914, it was the governing party of the country from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994. Members of the National Party were sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats. Its policies included apartheid, the establishment of a... |
94 | 60.26 | 598,718 | 49.48 | Dr D. F. Malan Daniel François Malan Daniel François Malan , more commonly known as D.F. Malan, was the Prime Minister of South Africa from 1948 to 1954. He is seen as a champion of Afrikaner nationalism. His National Party government came to power on the program of apartheid and began its comprehensive implementation.- Biography... |
|
| United Party United Party (South Africa) The United Party was South Africa's ruling political party between 1934 and 1948. It was formed by a merger of most of Prime Minister Barry Hertzog's National Party with the rival South African Party of Jan Smuts, plus the remnants of the Unionist Party... |
57 | 36.54 | 576,474 | 47.65 | J. G. N. Strauss Jacobus Gideon Nel Strauss Jacobus Gideon Nel Strauss, known as Koos Strauss, Kosie Strauss or J. G. N. Strauss , was leader of the South African United Party from 1950 to 1956... |
|
| Labour Party Labour Party (South Africa) The South African Labour Party, formed in March 1910 following discussions between trade unions and the Independent Labour Party of Transvaal, was a professedly democratic socialist party representing the interests of the white working class.-History:... |
5 | 3.21 | 34,730 | 5.87 | John Christie John Christie (mayor) John Christie born August 26, 1883 in Alva, Clackmannanshire, Scotland. The eldest of 8 children he served his apprenticeship as a chemist with Dr. James Duncan in Causeyside, Paisley, Scotland. He went to South Africa in 1901 as a member of the Royal Medical Corps during the Second Boer War... |
|
| Total | 156 |
The overall composition of the House, set out by province after the general election, was as below. There were boundary changes, from the delimitation of seats in the previous Parliament, so no attempt is made to identify changes.
| Province | National | United | Labour | Independent | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cape (general) | 30 | 24 | - | - | 54 |
| Cape (NRM) | - | - | - | 3 | 3 |
| Natal | 2 | 11 | 2 | - | 15 |
| Orange FS | 13 | - | - | - | 13 |
| SW Africe | 6 | - | - | - | 6 |
| Transvaal | 43 | 22 | 3 | - | 68 |
| Total | 94 | 57 | 5 | 3 | 159 |