DA eyes KZN, Gauteng and Free State coalition prospects while ANC grapples with MK distraction

A delegate holding a poster of John Steenhuisen at the Democratic Alliance Federal Conference held at Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand on 1 April, 2023. (Photo: Felix Dlangamandla)

By Queenin Masuabi

23 Jan 2024

The DA has set its sights on bringing the ANC to less than 50% in at least three provinces, with the party flagging the impact that Jacob Zuma’s MK party will have on the governing party’s decline. This is part two of an interview package.

The DA is looking to increase its support in its stronghold of Western Cape and is this time hoping to woo voters in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), Free State and Gauteng.

Speaking to Daily Maverick, DA leader John Steenhuisen explained that the ANC was weakening in KZN and Gauteng and with the entry of the MK party into the political arena, the prospects of the governing party’s success in these provinces are bleak.

“We believe we can form a coalition government in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal and we believe that the political dynamics in the Free State have given us a window of opportunity, although not as solid as KZN and Gauteng to be able to form some kind of government after elections.

“When I say that these are strategic provinces, it means we will be pouring in resources there, not saying that it will only be in those provinces… Jacob Zuma and the MK party will hurt the ANC in the upcoming elections,” he said.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Can the Democratic Alliance dislodge the ANC from power in 2024?

The DA and 10 other parties parties have formed a Multi-Party Charter ahead of the elections.

The party has been working closely with the IFP in KZN to keep the ANC out of governance at local level, which Steenhusien believes has paved the way for them to form a formidable force at provincial level too. He describes the DA’s working relationship with the IFP to be “mature” which makes it easier for the partnership to be successful.

John Steenhuisen, DA John Steenhuisen address the delegates at the Democratic Alliance Federal Conference held at Gallagher Convention centre in midrand on 1 April 2023. (Photo: Felix Dlangamandla)

“We have entered into a service delivery pact with the IFP in KZN and we are working together at a local government level to bring together clean and good governance in municipalities there. We have also strategically entered into that agreement to ensure that we are able to maximise the opposition vote. For instance, where the IFP is stronger in the particular ward and we are perhaps the weaker partner, we have stood aside and allowed the IFP to win that ward, unlike splitting the opposition vote. That has allowed us to win a number of seats from the ANC.

“I think this is a confidence-building exercise for a potential provincial administration because the ANC are polling low in KZN and it is likely there will be a coalition government,” he said.

The DA managed to obtain 13.90% of the vote in KwaZulu-Natal in 2019 while the IFP achieved 16.34%.

In Gauteng, the DA is the second largest party as it managed to get 27.45% support while in the Free State, they received 17.58%.

Internal polling

The DA’s internal polling has averaged their support at 25% which Steenhuisen hopes will increase throughout the duration of their election campaign.

“I am comfortable with where we are but after our manifesto launch I am hoping to see bounces in the poll and of course, as the campaign unfolds, we are hoping to increase even further.

“We are consistently polling above 25% and when we look at 2019, we were down to 16% on many of the polls and then we hovered around the 19%, 20% and 21% mark. Certainly, for the whole of last year, we sustained figures consistently above 25% and as high as 31%,” according to Steenhuisen.

This is contrary to the Ipsos polling released in October last year which indicated that the DA would not grow support from the previous elections, with 20% support polled among registered voters.

DA supporter A delegate holding a poster of John Steenhuisen at the Democratic Alliance Federal Conference held at Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand on 1 April, 2023. (Photo: Felix Dlangamandla)

The DA was dealt a blow in the 2019 elections as they declined from 22.23% to 20.77%, with Mmusi Maimane at the helm.

Steenhuisen dismissed perceptions that the DA is only concerned with persuading their traditional constituency to continue voting for them.

The party has in the past been accused of changing its strategy to be focused on white voters and neglecting the black majority.

“It would be the most stupid policy of a party to only campaign in areas where you got 50% plus one. No political campaign manager in the world would embark on such a short-sighted strategy. That is why we have started the campaign to start a DA branch in every ward in the country and we are up to 90% in that regard, because we have to campaign in every community.

“If you speak to anyone in the DA including the national campaign manager, they will tell you that we are going to campaign in every ward across the country, we will have posters up in every voting district. We have to get every vote for the DA,” he said. DM

Read Part One here: Steenhuisen brushes off DA quitters - 'It's a silly season, like a transfer season in football'

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