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Huge gains for EFF as ANC loses ground in Clocolan by-election

Huge gains for EFF as ANC loses ground in Clocolan by-election
Wayne Sussman
By Wayne Sussman
8 Aug 2024
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The EFF produced what is arguably its best electoral figures for 2024 when it shocked the ANC and a local party, the Setsoto Service Delivery Forum (SSDF) in a by-election in a township in the small Free State town of Clocolan. The ward was previously held by the SSDF and the ANC were heavily favoured to take the seat from the SSDF in this by-election.

Ward 8 (Hlohlolwane Ext 6 Clocolan) Setsoto, Thabo Mofutsanyane EFF 55% (15%) ANC 32% (38%) Setsoto Service Delivery Forum 9% (38%)  IFP 2% (3%) ACT 1% COPE <1%


The setting: Hlohlowane is a township just north of the town of Clocolan. Clocolan is close to the Lesotho border and near the towns of Ficksburg and Marquard. The area is known for its cherry, asparagus and maize farms. The seat of Setsoto is Ficksburg. Other towns in the municipality include Senekal.

The 2021 Local Government Election


Local party, the Setsoto Service Delivery Forum (SSDF) shocked the ANC in a traditional ANC seat by pipping the ANC by nine votes. The SSDF bested the ANC by 26 votes on the proportional representation (PR) ballot. 

The ANC won two of the three voting districts but the margins were very close. The SSDF won the ward by building a 38-vote buffer at the Mpokoane Creche voting district, the most populous district in the ward. 

The ANC won 17 out of the 33 seats to retain control of Setsoto. The SSDF became the official opposition with eight seats. The EFF won three seats while the DA and Freedom Front Plus (FF+) garnered two seats each. The African Transformation Movement (ATM) gained a single seat. 

The 2024 Provincial Elections 


The ANC was the most popular party in Ward 8, winning 62% of the provincial ballot vote. The EFF came second with 24% of the vote and the DA came third with 11% of the vote. SSDF did not contest the provincial elections, but they did endorse Action SA. Action SA finished well off the pace on the provincial ballot. 

The By-Election 


The ward councillor died. The SSDF and ANC were joined on the ballot by the EFF, Ace Magashule’s African Congress for Transformation (ACT), the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) and the Congress of the People (Cope).

The EFF threw the 2021 and recent 2024 election script out of the window with an emphatic win in this by-election. It more than doubled its percentage share of the vote when one considers the recent provincial ballot returns in the ward. It beat the ANC by 498 votes. 

The ANC’s percentage vote share almost declined by half when compared with the provincial ballot result here on 29 May. The SSDF was expected to lose this seat, but its decline was significant. It lost more than 75% of its support in this ward. The SSDF has its work cut out to remain a force in Setsoto politics after the 2026 local government elections.

The new 33 seat council composition is ANC 17 SSDF 7 (8) EFF 4 (3) DA 2 FF+ 2 ATM 1.

The EFF had a tough national and provincial election. The party lost seats and went from being the third-largest party to the fourth-largest party. It will hope that results like this will lead to a change of momentum. The party will celebrate this major upset and will use Clocolan as a blueprint for further by-election success between now and 2026.  

Poll


The final tally was 61%  (51%). The next round of by-elections will be on 14 August when there will be five by-elections in the Eastern Cape, one in KwaZulu-Natal and one in Limpopo. The most competitive by-elections are expected to be in Richmond in KwaZulu-Natal and in Kou-Kamma in the Sarah Baartman in the western region of the Eastern Cape. DM

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