Most South Africans satisfied with coalition government: Poll

Most South Africans are satisfied with the performance so far of the country's coalition government, also known as the Government of National Unity (GNU), which was formed after this year's general elections, according to a new poll.

The Social Research Foundation (SRF), a South African think tank, published its survey report on Friday.

Of the 1,204 people who voted in the May elections and were surveyed by the SRF in September, nearly 60 per cent believed the GNU is working well and will succeed, reports Xinhua news agency.

The GNU was formed by the African National Congress (ANC) and nine other political parties, including the Democratic Alliance (DA) after the ANC lost its parliamentary majority for the first time since 1994 in the May elections.

According to the survey, 18.5 per cent of participants thought the GNU is performing "very well," with 39.4 per cent saying it is doing "quite well." The figures also indicated that 58.7 per cent of respondents believed the GNU "will succeed." Only 29.6 per cent believed the coalition government "will fail."

When asked if the general elections were taking place now, which party would one vote for, 45 per cent said they would vote for the ANC, which won 40.2 per cent of the vote in the May elections, and 24 per cent for the DA, which won 21.8 per cent.

Meanwhile, 12 per cent named the uMkhonto weSizwe Party, which garnered 14.6 per cent of the vote in the May elections, and the Economic Freedom Fighters, which won 9.5 per cent, was only mentioned by 6 per cent of participants in the survey.

"The data indicates that both the ANC and DA have grown in support since the May 2024 elections. In general, the parties that are inside the GNU are up and the parties outside of it are down. This is consistent with the fact that the GNU is broadly well regarded by voters," concluded the report.

The survey had a margin of error of 3 per cent, it added.