With slightly over 78% votes counted in the national and provincial elections, the ruling African National Congress (ANC) and the main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) are projected to hold their positions as the leading political parties in South Africa, but with lower percentages than in the previous election, Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) results show on Friday.
According to the IEC on Friday morning, the ANC had won 57% of the votes counted so far, while the DA had 21.8% and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) had 10% of the votes.
The Inkatha Freedom Party had 2.89% and Freedom Front Plus (FF+) had won 2.48% as the counting continued, the elections body said.
The EFF, however, is expected to grow its base following their breaching the one million vote mark, the IEC noted.
The small but white-led FF+ party has slipped behind the Inkatha Freedom Party of Mangosuthu Buthelezi into fifth place, with a mere two percent support of the vote.
Full results are expected to be announced on Saturday, the IEC said.
The ANC got more than 62.1% of the vote during the last elections held in 2014 while the DA and EFF got 22.2% and 6.4%, respectively.
NM/jn/APA