Consolidating South Africa’s New Democracy: Geographical Dimensions of Party Support in the 1999 Election

Abstract

South Africa’s second open election in 1999 was a critical stage in the country’s democratic consolidation. Geographical analysis of the results is complicated by the data release policies of the Independent Electoral Commission and by the need to match polling district data with magisterial district boundaries. This paper focuses on spatial patterns of party support in the nine provinces. The data is examined in relation to the racial composition of provincial electorates, possible relationships between ethnicity, language and voting for parties with regional support bases, and in terms of rural, urban and metropolitan population. The election results are also analysed in relation to the internal apartheid boundaries of the ‘homelands’ and the former Coloured Labour Preference Area. The findings are related to South Africa’s racial divisions and the consolidation of liberal democracy.