Three by-elections were held across South Africa on Wednesday, with the ANC and the DA each defending a seat, and the PA taking a seat off the ANC in the Western Cape.
In Manenberg in Cape Town the DA won a three-way battle between itself, the PA, and the National Coloured Congress (NCC). The DA held the ward with 42.6% of the vote, down from the over 60% it won in the 2021 local government poll. The NCC and the PA each managed about 20% of the vote, with the ANC bringing up the rear with 10%.
It was a decent outing for both the NCC and the PA. In 2021 the NCC (then standing as the Cape Coloured Congress) had won about 4% of the vote in the ward, while the PA had managed less than 2%.
In Raymond Mhlaba (Fort Beaufort) in the Eastern Cape, the ANC held the ward fairly easily, winning nearly 60% of the vote, a slight decrease from its performance in 2021. The DA won 21% (compared to 15% in 2021) while the PA went from 7% to 19%.
In the final by-election, in Matzikama in the northern Western Cape, the PA snatched a seat off the ANC. The PA won the ward with a plurality, with 40% of the vote, more than doubling its vote. The DA was second with 32%, while the ANC was third with a quarter of the vote.
Overall, the PA will be pleased with its performance, with the party enjoying quite significant growth.
[Image:Victor in Manenberg, Deidrée Carol de Vos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Wu3XzA6W54]