Between a Rock and a Hard Place: The Marginalization of Colored and Indian Interests in South African Politics

Abstract

South Africa’s second democratic national election has been heralded as generally “free and fair” and a significant step toward the consolidation of the nation’s 1994 democracy. However, five years after the replacement of apartheid with full citizen participation and the recognition of equal rights for all, South Africa remains largely divided by race. Despite the overall peacefulness and tolerance that marked the election on June 2, 1999, and the general assumption that the country is moving away from race-based politics, the issue of race proved to be far from insignificant in both the campaigns of the various political parties and the patterns of voter support. Although most parties went to extensive lengths to prove their commitment to multiracialism and claimed support across the racial spectrum, few had much success in transcending the historical divisions of the electorate.