South African general election, 1989
Encyclopedia
The 1989 South African general election was South Africa
's last national race-based parliamentary election. The election was called early (no election was required until 1992) to gauge support for the recently elected head of the National Party
, Frederik Willem de Klerk
(who was in the process of replacing P W Botha as the country's president) and his program of reform, which was to include further retreat from the policy of apartheid.
Although it still won an absolute majority, the National Party suffered an electoral setback, winning only 48% of the popular vote and 103 of the seats in the House of Assembly
.
The official opposition Conservative Party
(CP), who opposed any form of powersharing with other race groups, remained the official opposition with 41 seats and gained 31% of the votes.
Before the elections the liberal
Progressive Federal Party
(PFP) had dissolved itself and regrouped as the Democratic Party
(DP), which went on to take 34 seats.
Summary of the South African House of Assembly election results, 1989
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
! colspan=2 align="left"|Parties
! Votes
! %
! +/-
! Seats
! +/-
|-
|bgcolor="darkblue"|
| align="left"|National Party
| 1 039 704
| 48.2%
| -4.1%
| 103
| -21
|-
|bgcolor="#ffd700"|
| align="left"|Conservative Party
| 680 131
| 31.5%
| +4.9%
| 41
| +19
|-
|bgcolor="#0000FF"|
| align="left"|Democratic Party
| 431 444
| 20.0%
| +6.0%*
| 34
| +14*
|-
|bgcolor="#CC5500"|
| align="left"|Herstigte Nasionale Party
| 5 416
| 0.2%
| -2.7%
| 0
| ±0
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
!
! align="left"|Total
! 2 157 593
! 100%
!
! 178
! +11
|}
* Compared to the Progressive Federal Party
.
The White Chamber of Parliament had 178 members, 166 of whom were directly elected (including a seat from Walvis Bay
, which was added in 1981) with 8 Members indirectly elected by the directly elected members on the basis of proportional representation and 4 nominated by the State President (one from each province).
The results of the election were interpreted by the government (based on support for the NP and the DP together) as a mandate from the white electorate to forsake the apartheid system and seek a compromise with the African National Congress
and its leader Nelson Mandela
.
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
! align="left"|Parties
! Votes
! %
! Seats
! +/-
|-
| align="left"|Labour Party
| 171 930
| 65.0%
| 69
| -7
|-
| align="left"|Democratic Reform Party
| 39 741
| 15.2%
| 5
| +5
|-
| align="left"|Independents
| 24 705
| 9.4%
| 2
| +2
|-
| align="left"|United Democratic Party
| 19 261
| 7.6%
| 3
| +3
|-
| align="left"|Freedom Party
| 1 949
| 0.7%
| 1
| ±0
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
|-
! align="left"|Total
! 261 047
! 100.0%
! align="center" colspan="2"|80
|}
Coloured
voter turnout was low (about 18%). Those who did vote supported Allan Hendrickse
's Labour Party by a large margin.
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
! align="left"|Parties
! Votes
! %
! Elected
seats
! +/-
! Appointed
seats
! Total
seats
|-
| align="left"|Solidarity
| 58 216
| 37.6%
| 16
| -1
| 3
| 19
|-
| align="left"|National People's Party
| 38 523
| 24.9%
| 8
| -12
| 1
| 9
|-
| align="left"|Independents
| 24 157
| 15.6%
| 6
| +4
| 0
| 6
|-
| align="left"|Democratic Party
| 10 427
| 6.7%
| 3
| +3
| 0
| 3
|-
| align="left"|National Federal Party
| 8 058
| 5.2%
| 1
| +1
| 0
| 1
|-
| align="left"|People's Party of South Africa
| 6 064
| 3.9%
| 1
| +1
| 0
| 1
|-
| align="left"|United Party
| 2 712
| 1.8%
| 0
| ±0
| 0
| 0
|-
| align="left"|Merit People's Party
| 2 078
| 1.3%
| 3
| +3
| 1
| 4
|-
| align="left"|Progressive Independent Party
| 1 497
| 1.0%
| 0
| -1
| 0
| 0
|-
| align="left"|Freedom Party
| 703
| 0.7%
| 2
| +2
| 0
| 2
|-
| align="left"|Republican Party
| 701
| 0.7%
| 0
| ±0
| 0
| 0
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
|-
! align="left"|Total
! 154 524
! 100.0%
! align="center" colspan="2"| 40
! 5
! 45
|}
Indian
voter turnout was around 23%.
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
's last national race-based parliamentary election. The election was called early (no election was required until 1992) to gauge support for the recently elected head of the 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...
, Frederik Willem de Klerk
Frederik Willem de Klerk
Frederik Willem de Klerk , often known as F. W. de Klerk, is the former seventh and last State President of apartheid-era South Africa, serving from September 1989 to May 1994...
(who was in the process of replacing P W Botha as the country's president) and his program of reform, which was to include further retreat from the policy of apartheid.
Although it still won an absolute majority, the National Party suffered an electoral setback, winning only 48% of the popular vote and 103 of the 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 official opposition Conservative Party
Conservative Party (South Africa)
The Conservative Party of South Africa was a conservative party formed in 1982 as a breakaway from the ruling National Party...
(CP), who opposed any form of powersharing with other race groups, remained the official opposition with 41 seats and gained 31% of the votes.
Before the elections the liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
Progressive Federal Party
Progressive Federal Party
The Progressive Federal Party was a South African political party formed in 1977. It advocated power-sharing in South Africa through a federal constitution, in place of apartheid...
(PFP) had dissolved itself and regrouped as the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (South Africa)
The Democratic Party was the name of the South African political party now called the Democratic Alliance . Although the Democratic Party name dates from 1989, the party existed under other labels throughout the Apartheid years, when it was the Parliamentary opposition to the ruling National...
(DP), which went on to take 34 seats.
House of Assembly (White)
6 September 1989, House of Assembly Election- Registered voters: 3 120 104
- Total votes (Voter turnout): 2 167 929 (69.48%)
- Invalid/blank votes: 10 336
- Total valid votes: 2 157 593
Summary of the South African House of Assembly election results, 1989
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
! colspan=2 align="left"|Parties
! Votes
! %
! +/-
! Seats
! +/-
|-
|bgcolor="darkblue"|
| align="left"|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...
| 1 039 704
| 48.2%
| -4.1%
| 103
| -21
|-
|bgcolor="#ffd700"|
| align="left"|Conservative Party
Conservative Party (South Africa)
The Conservative Party of South Africa was a conservative party formed in 1982 as a breakaway from the ruling National Party...
| 680 131
| 31.5%
| +4.9%
| 41
| +19
|-
|bgcolor="#0000FF"|
| align="left"|Democratic Party
Democratic Party (South Africa)
The Democratic Party was the name of the South African political party now called the Democratic Alliance . Although the Democratic Party name dates from 1989, the party existed under other labels throughout the Apartheid years, when it was the Parliamentary opposition to the ruling National...
| 431 444
| 20.0%
| +6.0%*
| 34
| +14*
|-
|bgcolor="#CC5500"|
| align="left"|Herstigte Nasionale Party
Herstigte Nasionale Party
The Herstigte Nasionale Party van Suid-Afrika was formed as a right-wing splinter group of the South African National Party.-Formation:...
| 5 416
| 0.2%
| -2.7%
| 0
| ±0
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
!
! align="left"|Total
! 2 157 593
! 100%
!
! 178
! +11
|}
Progressive Federal Party
The Progressive Federal Party was a South African political party formed in 1977. It advocated power-sharing in South Africa through a federal constitution, in place of apartheid...
.
The White Chamber of Parliament had 178 members, 166 of whom were directly elected (including a seat from Walvis Bay
Walvis Bay
Walvis Bay , is a city in Namibia and the name of the bay on which it lies...
, which was added in 1981) with 8 Members indirectly elected by the directly elected members on the basis of proportional representation and 4 nominated by the State President (one from each province).
The results of the election were interpreted by the government (based on support for the NP and the DP together) as a mandate from the white electorate to forsake the apartheid system and seek a compromise with the African National Congress
African National Congress
The African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...
and its leader Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
.
House of Representatives (Coloured)
Summary of House of Representatives election results, 1989|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
! align="left"|Parties
! Votes
! %
! Seats
! +/-
|-
| align="left"|Labour Party
Labour Party (Coloured)
The Labour Party was a South African political party founded in 1969 and led for many years by Revd Allan Hendrickse. Although avowedly opposed to apartheid, it participated in the Coloured Persons Representative Council. It opposed the guerrilla struggle of Umkhonto we Sizwe and the call for...
| 171 930
| 65.0%
| 69
| -7
|-
| align="left"|Democratic Reform Party
| 39 741
| 15.2%
| 5
| +5
|-
| align="left"|Independents
| 24 705
| 9.4%
| 2
| +2
|-
| align="left"|United Democratic Party
| 19 261
| 7.6%
| 3
| +3
|-
| align="left"|Freedom Party
| 1 949
| 0.7%
| 1
| ±0
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
|-
! align="left"|Total
! 261 047
! 100.0%
! align="center" colspan="2"|80
|}
Coloured
Coloured
In the South African, Namibian, Zambian, Botswana and Zimbabwean context, the term Coloured refers to an heterogenous ethnic group who possess ancestry from Europe, various Khoisan and Bantu tribes of Southern Africa, West Africa, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaya, India, Mozambique,...
voter turnout was low (about 18%). Those who did vote supported Allan Hendrickse
Allan Hendrickse
Helenard Joe Hendrickse was a South African politician, Congregationalist minister, and teacher. He participated in an act of defiance by swimming at a South African beach reserved for whites only. He was born in Uitenhage in the Eastern Cape and died of a heart attack at Port Elizabeth's airport...
's Labour Party by a large margin.
House of Delegates (Indian)
Summary of House of Delegates election results, 1989|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
! align="left"|Parties
! Votes
! %
! Elected
seats
! +/-
! Appointed
seats
! Total
seats
|-
| align="left"|Solidarity
| 58 216
| 37.6%
| 16
| -1
| 3
| 19
|-
| align="left"|National People's Party
| 38 523
| 24.9%
| 8
| -12
| 1
| 9
|-
| align="left"|Independents
| 24 157
| 15.6%
| 6
| +4
| 0
| 6
|-
| align="left"|Democratic Party
Democratic Party (South Africa)
The Democratic Party was the name of the South African political party now called the Democratic Alliance . Although the Democratic Party name dates from 1989, the party existed under other labels throughout the Apartheid years, when it was the Parliamentary opposition to the ruling National...
| 10 427
| 6.7%
| 3
| +3
| 0
| 3
|-
| align="left"|National Federal Party
| 8 058
| 5.2%
| 1
| +1
| 0
| 1
|-
| align="left"|People's Party of South Africa
| 6 064
| 3.9%
| 1
| +1
| 0
| 1
|-
| align="left"|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...
| 2 712
| 1.8%
| 0
| ±0
| 0
| 0
|-
| align="left"|Merit People's Party
| 2 078
| 1.3%
| 3
| +3
| 1
| 4
|-
| align="left"|Progressive Independent Party
| 1 497
| 1.0%
| 0
| -1
| 0
| 0
|-
| align="left"|Freedom Party
| 703
| 0.7%
| 2
| +2
| 0
| 2
|-
| align="left"|Republican Party
| 701
| 0.7%
| 0
| ±0
| 0
| 0
|-style="background:#E9E9E9;"
|-
! align="left"|Total
! 154 524
! 100.0%
! align="center" colspan="2"| 40
! 5
! 45
|}
Indian
Indian South Africans
Indian South Africans are people of Indian descent living in South Africa and mostly live in and around the city of Durban, making it 'the largest 'Indian' city outside India'. Most Indians in South Africa are descendents of migrants from colonial India during late 19th-century through early...
voter turnout was around 23%.