Political System of South Africa — DU DSC-17 Unit 6 Notes

South Africa is the unit where one of the world’s most admired constitutions meets one of its most unequal societies. A system designed in the early 1990s to end racial rule now has to cope with coalition government, collapsing municipal services, a land question that has never been settled, and an electorate that stopped giving one party a majority only in 2024. If you can explain why those things sit side by side, you can answer almost any question DU sets on this unit.

In short: the political system of South Africa is a constitutional democracy created by the 1996 Constitution. A President elected by the National Assembly is both head of state and head of government; a two-house Parliament makes laws; an independent judiciary headed by the Constitutional Court reviews them; and power is shared among national, provincial and local spheres of government.

How This Unit Is Framed in the DU Syllabus

The official DSC-17 syllabus gives the same four themes for every country in the paper. For South Africa (Unit VI, 6 hours), they are:

1. Political Traditions and Constitutional Development
2. Society and Economy: Nature of the State
3. Party and Electoral System
4. Unitary and Federal System

The prescribed readings are Tom Lodge’s chapter “South Africa” in Kesselman, Krieger and Joseph, Introduction to Comparative Politics (8th ed., 2019, pp. 462–508), and Anthony Butler, Contemporary South Africa (Palgrave Macmillan, 2004, pp. 6–30). The Cases in Comparative Politics volume by O’Neil, Fields and Share (3rd ed., 2010, pp. 490–530) is also listed for the paper. These notes are organised around the four themes, so each section below tells you which theme it serves. They are meant to sit alongside the readings, not replace them.

This is one of seven country units. For comparison, see the other notes in the Comparative Political Systems series, and the full DU BA (Hons.) Political Science syllabus.

South Africa at a Glance

Theme 1: Political Traditions and Constitutional Development

From Colonial Rule to the Union (1652–1910)

The Dutch East India Company set up a supply station at the Cape in 1652. British control of the Cape followed in the early nineteenth century, and the competing Boer republics and British colonies that grew up in the region were united on 31 May 1910 as the Union of South Africa, formed from the Cape, Natal, Transvaal and Orange River colonies under the South Africa Act of 1909.

The key point for politics: the Union was a self-governing dominion modelled on British parliamentary government, but the vote and political power stayed overwhelmingly in white hands. Black South Africans were excluded from meaningful participation in all provinces, and the Union Parliament could legislate without any equal protection for non-white citizens.

Textbooks differ slightly on when the Union became fully independent. The Statute of Westminster dates from 1931; the Status of the Union Act, which gave it effect in South African law, followed in 1934. Use the date your prescribed reading uses, and mention both if you are unsure.

Segregation and Apartheid (1948–1994)

After the National Party’s election victory in 1948, segregation was turned into a full system of racial classification called apartheid. Racial categories decided where people could live, what schools they attended, what work they could do and whether they could vote. Important laws and policies included the Population Registration Act and Group Areas Act (1950), the Bantu Authorities Act (1951), the Bantu Education Act (1953), and later the “homelands” or Bantustan policy, completed by the Homeland Citizens Act of 1970, which stripped many Black South Africans of South African citizenship.

South Africa became a republic in 1961, replacing the British monarch with a President chosen by representatives of the white electorate. The 1983 constitution created a Tricameral Parliament with separate houses for whites, Coloureds and Indians, but excluded the Black majority altogether.

This is why the later constitution-making was so intense: it had to replace a legal order in which the law itself had been the main instrument of racial domination.

Resistance and International Pressure

Opposition came from several directions: the African National Congress (ANC, founded 1912) and the Pan Africanist Congress, trade unions, student movements, churches, and the mass-based United Democratic Front of the 1980s. International sanctions and isolation, especially in the 1980s, raised the cost of maintaining apartheid. In February 1990 the government lifted the bans on liberation movements and released Nelson Mandela.

The Negotiated Transition (1990–1996)

South Africa did not move to democracy by revolution or foreign occupation. It moved by negotiation, which is one reason comparativists treat it as a classic “pacted transition”.

• CODESA and multi-party negotiations (1991–93): The Convention for a Democratic South Africa and the later Multi-Party Negotiating Process brought the apartheid government, the ANC and other parties to the table.
• Interim Constitution (1993): Governed the transition. It introduced universal suffrage and a power-sharing Government of National Unity for the first term.
• First democratic elections (April 1994): Held on a non-racial voters’ roll. Nelson Mandela became the country’s first democratically elected President, and the ANC led a Government of National Unity.
• Constitutional Assembly (1994–96): The elected Parliament sat as a Constitutional Assembly and drafted the final constitution. The Constitutional Court certified the text on 4 December 1996, and Mandela signed it six days later at Sharpeville, a township closely associated with the 1960 massacre.
• Truth and Reconciliation Commission: Set up under a 1995 Act and chaired by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, it dealt with gross human-rights violations and was meant to complement the political settlement.

Debate: how good was the settlement? Admirers stress that a negotiated route avoided a civil war and produced a constitution accepted across racial lines. Critics argue that the political transfer left the economic structure largely intact, and that the property clause (section 25) and the reconciliation approach slowed land and wealth redistribution. This dispute is still alive: in February 2025 the advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi argued that a law to redistribute land equitably should have been passed when the final constitution was adopted, while the DA and landowner groups argue that land reform failures are failures of implementation, not of the Constitution.

Role of the ANC in the Transition (PYQ-Relevant)

DU has asked directly about the ANC (see the PYQ section below), so organise this answer around five points:

1. Liberation movement: founded in 1912; moved from petitions to mass resistance (the Defiance Campaign of 1952, the Freedom Charter of 1955) and, after being banned in 1960, to armed struggle through its military wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe.
2. Mobilisation: worked through the internal mass movement, trade unions and exile networks, combined with international sanctions campaigns.
3. Negotiator: after the unbanning in 1990, it entered talks with the National Party government and secured a non-racial franchise and an elected Constitutional Assembly.
4. Governing party: won the 1994 election, led the Government of National Unity and then governed with parliamentary majorities until 2024.
5. Reconciliation policy: Mandela’s emphasis on national reconciliation shaped both the Constitution and the TRC.

A caution on names: the Umkhonto we Sizwe of 1961 was the ANC’s armed wing. The MK Party that contested the 2024 election and is associated with Jacob Zuma is a separate, new party, and the ANC has taken legal action over its use of the name.

The Constitution of 1996

The 1996 Constitution is the foundation of the whole system. It was written to confront the legacy of apartheid and to create a society “based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights”.

Key features

• Supremacy of the Constitution (section 2): It is the highest law. Any law or conduct inconsistent with it is invalid.
• Founding values (section 1): Human dignity, equality, advancement of human rights and freedoms, non-racialism and non-sexism, supremacy of the Constitution and the rule of law, universal adult suffrage, a national common voters’ roll, regular elections and a multi-party system of democratic government.
• Bill of Rights (Chapter 2): Protects civil and political rights and also socio-economic rights, including access to housing, health care, food, water and social security, as well as the right to education.
• Language and culture: The Constitution recognises the country’s diversity. It originally listed 11 official languages; South African Sign Language became the 12th official language in 2023 (Constitution Eighteenth Amendment Act, signed on 19 July 2023). Many textbooks and older notes still say 11.
• Three spheres of government: national, provincial and local, described as “distinctive, interdependent and interrelated”.
• Independent institutions: Chapter 9 institutions that support democracy (see below).

Principles of equality, human rights and social justice

• Equality (section 9): Equal protection and benefit of the law, and protection from unfair discrimination on grounds including race, gender, religion and disability. Section 9 also allows laws and measures designed to advance people disadvantaged by past discrimination, which is the constitutional basis of affirmative action.
• Human dignity (section 10): Everyone has inherent dignity and the right to have it respected and protected.
• Freedoms: Freedom and security of the person (section 12), freedom of expression (section 16), assembly (section 17), association (section 18) and movement (section 21). The earlier version of these notes grouped them as “sections 12–18”; freedom of movement is actually section 21.
• Social justice: The state must take reasonable measures to realise socio-economic rights progressively. Courts have enforced this in cases such as Grootboom (housing, 2000) and Treatment Action Campaign (access to HIV medication, 2002).

Chapter 9 institutions

These are independent bodies created to protect and strengthen democracy: the Public Protector, the South African Human Rights Commission, the Commission for Gender Equality, the Auditor-General, the Electoral Commission (IEC), and the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities. They report to the National Assembly, not to the executive.

Separation of Powers and Checks and Balances

South Africa uses a separation of powers between the executive (President and Cabinet), the legislature (Parliament) and the judiciary (courts). But it is not a strict, US-style separation. Because the President is chosen by the National Assembly and ministers are normally Members of Parliament, executive and legislature are linked, as in parliamentary systems. The real checks are:

• Judicial review: The Constitutional Court can declare Acts of Parliament and conduct of the President unconstitutional, and must confirm any such order made by a lower court.
• Parliamentary oversight: Questions, committees, inquiries and, at the extreme, a motion of no confidence or removal of the President.
• Independent institutions: The Public Protector, Auditor-General, IEC and others.
• Federal-style checks: The National Council of Provinces represents provincial interests in lawmaking.

A good example of the courts at work is the 2016 Nkandla judgment, in which the Constitutional Court held that the President had failed to comply with the Public Protector’s remedial action. Another is the May 2024 Constitutional Court ruling that Jacob Zuma could not stand as a candidate in that year’s election because of his criminal conviction, though he could still campaign for the MK Party.

Amending the Constitution

The Constitution is rigid: it can be amended, but only with special majorities set out in section 74. The earlier version of these notes simplified this; the exact rules are:

There are also procedural safeguards: a Bill amending the Constitution must contain only amendments and connected matters; its particulars must be published for public comment at least 30 days before introduction; and it cannot be voted on in the Assembly within 30 days of introduction.

The amendment rule shaped one of the biggest political fights of the 2020s. On 7 December 2021, a Bill to amend section 25 so that compensation for expropriation could be nil received 204 votes for and 145 against; it needed 267 and failed. Some commentators wrongly say that section 25 needs 75% support. The 75% threshold applies only to section 1 and section 74(1). Even some official summaries repeat this error, so be careful in exams.

At least eighteen amendment Acts have been passed since 1996. Two that matter for this unit are the Seventeenth Amendment (2012, assented 1 February 2013), which restructured the courts, and the Eighteenth Amendment (2023), which recognised South African Sign Language.

In short: the 1996 Constitution is the starting point of the whole system, not just one topic. Its supremacy, Bill of Rights, rigidity and independent institutions explain why courts and constitutional rules play such a large role in South African politics.

Key Terms: English and Hindi

DU answers may be written in English or Hindi. This short glossary helps with both.

Theme 2: Society and Economy — The Nature of the State

The DU syllabus asks you to link institutions to society, and this is the theme most student notes skip. South Africa’s institutions only make sense once you see what they have to work with.

A Divided Society, Officially Reorganised

South Africa is multi-racial and multi-lingual. Apartheid used racial classification (African, Coloured, Indian/Asian and White) to distribute rights and resources, and those categories still show up in inequality data, in policy debates and in how parties appeal to voters. The 1996 Constitution rejects racial classification as a basis for rights, but it also allows measures to correct past disadvantage. This tension, between non-racialism and redress, runs through nearly every policy argument in the country.

Economic Inequality and Unemployment

The legacy of apartheid appears most clearly in the economy. Statistics South Africa’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey recorded an official unemployment rate of 33.6% in the second quarter of 2026, up from 32.7% in the first quarter, and a youth unemployment rate (ages 15–34) of 47.4%. South Africa is widely described as one of the world’s most unequal societies; for the latest inequality figures, check the World Bank and Stats SA rather than relying on a number in a textbook.

Key economic policy moments to know (use them as a chronology in answers):

• Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP), 1994: The ANC’s first programme, focused on housing, basic services and social delivery.
• Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR), 1996: A market-oriented macroeconomic strategy that stressed fiscal discipline and growth. Critics on the left argued it favoured business over redistribution.
• Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) and Broad-Based BEE: Policies to widen black ownership and participation in the economy. Supporters see them as essential redress; critics argue they have mainly benefited a politically connected elite.
• National Development Plan 2030: A long-term plan to reduce poverty and inequality, still the official reference point for planning.

Land

Land ownership remains deeply unequal, and the issue sits at the centre of debates about the nature of the state. Land reform has had three strands: restitution (returning land taken under apartheid-era laws), redistribution and tenure reform. Critics say progress has been slow and weakly implemented. The constitutional debate is covered in the “Contemporary Relevance” section below.

What Kind of State Is This?

Comparative scholars usually describe post-apartheid South Africa with several overlapping labels, and it is good practice to offer them as competing readings rather than choosing one:

• A constitutional democracy, because rights, elections and courts genuinely constrain power. The Economist Intelligence Unit nevertheless rated South Africa a “flawed democracy” in 2022.
• A dominant-party system, because the ANC won every national election with a majority from 1994 to 2019. After 2024 this description has to be revised, because the ANC fell below 50% for the first time.
• A “transformative” constitutional state, because the Constitution is explicitly meant to change society, not just to restrain government.
• A state under strain, because corruption, weak municipalities and unemployment limit what institutions can deliver. Some commentators argue South Africa is approaching a dysfunctional state; others say the institutions have shown resilience, citing the courts, the Public Protector’s work and the 2024 transfer to a coalition without violence.

For the exact framing used in your reading list, check Lodge (2019) and Butler (2004).

Theme 3: Party and Electoral System

How Elections Work

South Africa uses a proportional representation (PR) system. Votes cast for parties are translated into seats broadly in proportion to the vote, and there is no constituency system for the National Assembly in the British or Indian sense.

The system changed in 2024, and many notes online (including earlier versions of these) are out of date on this point.

• Before 2024: Voters chose a party from a closed list; independent candidates could not stand in national or provincial elections.
• The reform: In June 2020 the Constitutional Court (in the New Nation Movement case) held that the Electoral Act was unconstitutional because it did not allow independents to stand. Parliament responded with the Electoral Amendment Act, signed by President Ramaphosa on 17 April 2023.
• After the reform: The 400-seat National Assembly is filled in two tiers: 200 regional seats, contested by parties and independent candidates in the nine provinces, and 200 national compensatory seats, contested by parties only, to restore overall proportionality. Voters now receive three ballot papers: a national ballot, a regional ballot and a provincial ballot.
• Challenge: The Independent Candidates Association challenged the 200/200 split, arguing independents should be able to contest more seats. The Constitutional Court dismissed the challenge in December 2023.
• Result: In the 2024 election, no independent candidate won a seat in the National Assembly.

So the correct exam sentence is: South Africa still uses a proportional system, but since 2024 voters can also choose independent candidates for the regional seats.

Local government elections use a mixed system: voters elect ward councillors directly and also vote for parties on a proportional basis, so that councils combine local representation with proportionality.

Implications of the PR system

✅ Ensures varied representation in Parliament, including smaller parties and minorities. ✅ Reflects the diversity of the population and avoids large “wasted vote” problems. ✅ Encourages coalitions and cross-party bargaining when no party wins a majority. ❌ Can produce fragmentation and unstable coalitions, especially in municipalities. ❌ Weakens the direct link between voters and individual representatives, since parties control the lists.

Debate: constituencies or lists? After 1994 the system was defended as inclusive and as a safeguard against a winner-takes-all politics. Reform advocates argued that it left MPs accountable to party leaders rather than to voters. A government-appointed Electoral Task Team chaired by Frederik van Zyl Slabbert recommended a more constituency-based model in 2003, which was not adopted. The 2023 Act is a partial response, not a full constituency system.

Major Parties and Their Positions

The 2024 General Election

The seventh democratic election was held on 29 May 2024. Turnout was 58.64% of about 27.8 million registered voters, a fall of more than seven points from 2019.

The nine largest parties are shown; 18 parties won seats in all. In 2019 the ANC had won 230 seats with 57.50%.

This was the first time since 1994 that the ANC lost its parliamentary majority. No party reached the 201 seats needed to elect a President alone. After negotiations, the ANC, DA, IFP and PA agreed on 14 June 2024 to form a Government of National Unity, and Cyril Ramaphosa was re-elected President by the National Assembly. Because section 88 limits a President to two terms (and a person elected to fill a vacancy does not count that period as a term), his current term runs to 2029 and is his last.

Why did the ANC lose its majority? Common explanations, which you should present as explanations rather than as proven causes, are persistent unemployment and poor service delivery, the corruption associated with “state capture” under the Zuma presidency, the split caused by the new MK Party, and declining turnout and generational change in the electorate.

Coalitions and the Government of National Unity

South Africa is not new to power-sharing: the Interim Constitution required a Government of National Unity in 1994–96. The 2024 GNU is different. It is a voluntary coalition formed after an election, in which the ANC and DA (the biggest historic rivals) share executive power while still competing against each other in elections and sometimes in court.

By late October 2026 the GNU was still in place, but strains were visible. The ANC Youth League called for DA ministers to be removed, and there were disputes over ANC candidates for the local elections, but President Ramaphosa said the reasons for forming the GNU remained valid. The DA has also challenged laws signed by the President, including the Expropriation Act (see below). Observers expect the November 2026 local elections to be a test of the arrangement. An elective conference of the ANC is due in 2027.

The Role of Parties in Policy and Government

• Policy development: Parties set out their programmes in election manifestos and push them in Parliament and in the Cabinet.
• Oversight: Opposition parties question ministers, serve on committees and, when necessary, litigate. The EFF and DA have repeatedly used the courts to enforce accountability.
• Coalition governance: When no party has a majority, policy is negotiated between coalition partners, which changes how laws are made and who holds ministerial posts.
• Public participation: Parties also organise voters and bring local issues into national debate.

Local Government Elections, 4 November 2026

The next elections are the local government elections on 4 November 2026, which will complete five years since the 2021 municipal elections. A very large number of parties are registered, and many large cities have been run by unstable coalitions. In 2026 the government also introduced a Local Government: Municipal Structures Amendment Bill that addresses coalition instability in municipalities. When the results are announced, update your notes: they will show whether the DA and ANC hold their metros and whether new coalitions emerge.

The Institutions: Executive, Legislature and Judiciary

Themes 1 to 4 are linked by the three branches of government. This section covers them in detail, and it corrects several points that older versions of these notes got wrong.

The Executive

The national executive consists of the President, the Deputy President and the Cabinet. It implements laws and policy, prepares legislation and runs the state administration.

The President: Election, Powers and Limits

• Election: At its first sitting after an election, the National Assembly elects the President from among its members (section 86). The President then ceases to be a Member of Parliament. The Chief Justice presides over the election.
• Term: Five years, for a maximum of two terms (section 88).
• Dual role: Head of state and head of the national executive.
• Powers and functions (section 84): Assents to and signs Bills; commissions inquiries; appoints Cabinet members, ambassadors and, on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission, judges; is Commander-in-Chief of the South African National Defence Force; and represents the country in foreign affairs.
• Assent to Bills: The President has no absolute veto. If he has reservations, he may send a Bill back to the National Assembly or refer it to the Constitutional Court (section 79).

Limits and accountability

• The President must act within the Constitution and cannot rule by decree.
• Motion of no confidence (section 102): If a majority of National Assembly members vote against the President, the President and the whole Cabinet must resign.
• Removal (section 89): Two-thirds of the Assembly may remove the President, but only for a serious violation of the Constitution or the law, serious misconduct or inability to perform the functions of office.
• Presidents since 1994: Mandela (1994–99), Mbeki (1999–2008), Motlanthe (2008–09), Zuma (2009–18) and Ramaphosa (2018–). Mbeki and Zuma both left office after pressure from their own party, which shows that party politics can decide a President’s fate as much as constitutional procedure.

Debate: presidential or parliamentary? South Africa has an executive President who is both head of state and government, which looks presidential. But the President is elected by, and answerable to, the Assembly, and can be forced out by a no-confidence vote, which is the hallmark of a parliamentary system. Wikipedia’s summary of the system calls it a “parliamentary republic with an executive presidency”, and a University of Pretoria study chapter argues the model is not a typical presidential system but closer to a Westminster-type parliamentary one combined with proportional representation. The safest exam answer: it is a parliamentary system with an executive president, a hybrid.

The Deputy President

The Deputy President is selected by the President from among the members of the National Assembly (section 91). He or she assists the President in the execution of government functions, carries out responsibilities assigned by the President, and acts as President when the President is absent or incapacitated. Succession runs to the Deputy President, then another minister designated by the Cabinet and finally the Speaker of the Assembly.

The Cabinet and Executive Agencies

• Composition: The President (head of Cabinet), the Deputy President and Ministers. The President may choose any number of ministers from the Assembly and no more than two from outside it.
• Deputy Ministers: They assist ministers but are not Cabinet members. The earlier version of these notes listed them within the Cabinet; that was inaccurate.
• Functions: Develops and implements national policy, prepares and initiates legislation, coordinates the work of departments and administers public services such as education, health and defence.
• Accountability: Ministers are collectively and individually accountable to Parliament and must provide full and regular reports.
• Size: The 2024 coalition Cabinet had 32 ministries, much larger than previous Cabinets, because power-sharing required more posts.
• Executive agencies and independent bodies: The South African Revenue Service (SARS) and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) are examples of bodies that implement policy but are meant to operate independently.

The Legislature

Parliament sits in Cape Town and consists of two houses.

National Assembly (NA)

• Between 350 and 400 members, elected by voters for five years; the current size is 400.
• Elects the President, passes laws, scrutinises the executive and approves the budget.

National Council of Provinces (NCOP)

• 90 delegates: each of the nine provinces sends ten, regardless of population. Each delegation has six permanent delegates and four special delegates, who include the Premier (or a designated member of the provincial legislature) and three other special delegates.
• It is indirectly elected: citizens vote for provincial legislatures, which then appoint the delegations.
• Each province has one vote on most matters, so provincial interests are represented equally.
• Its role is to ensure provincial interests are considered in national lawmaking, and its approval, with six of nine provinces, is required for constitutional amendments affecting provinces.

Functions of Parliament

• Law-making: Considers, amends and passes Bills.
• Oversight: Holds the executive to account through questions, committees and inquiries.
• Budget: Considers and approves the national budget and other money Bills; only the Minister of Finance may introduce a money Bill.
• Public participation: Parliament has a duty to facilitate public involvement in its work. Courts have invalidated legislation passed without adequate public participation.

The Legislative Process

Bills follow different tracks depending on whether they affect the provinces:

• Section 75 Bills (ordinary Bills not affecting provinces) are passed by the Assembly, and the NCOP considers them and can propose amendments, but the Assembly has the final say.
• Section 76 Bills (ordinary Bills affecting provinces) give the NCOP real power. These Bills can be introduced in either House and, if the Houses disagree, go to a Mediation Committee.
• Section 77 governs money Bills.
• Section 74 governs constitutional amendments (see Theme 1).

A simple step-by-step outline:

1. Drafting: A Bill is prepared by the executive, a parliamentary committee or a member of Parliament.
2. Introduction: It is introduced in the Assembly or, for certain section 76 Bills, in the NCOP.
3. Committee review: The relevant committee studies the Bill, holds public hearings and proposes amendments.
4. Debate and voting: The first House debates and votes.
5. Second House: The other House considers it under the rules of the applicable section.
6. Assent: The President signs the Bill into law, or refers it back or to the Constitutional Court if he has reservations.
7. Implementation: The executive implements the Act.

Parliamentary Committees

• Portfolio committees monitor government departments, such as health, defence or finance.
• Select committees work in the NCOP.
• Joint and standing committees handle matters involving both Houses or ongoing business, such as the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, which scrutinises government spending.
• Ad hoc committees are set up for specific tasks, for example the committee that handled the section 25 amendment.

Their functions are to examine Bills, hold public hearings, monitor spending and performance, and promote transparency.

In short: the executive implements policy, Parliament makes laws and oversees the executive, and the system is built so that neither can ignore the other. The NCOP is the link between national lawmaking and the provinces.

The Judiciary

Structure of the Courts

1. Constitutional Court: The highest court. It has 11 judges (the Chief Justice, Deputy Chief Justice and nine others). Since the Seventeenth Amendment (assented to on 1 February 2013), it is the highest court in all matters, not only constitutional ones. Older notes that say the Supreme Court of Appeal is the highest court for non-constitutional matters are out of date.
2. Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA): Hears appeals in any matter that the Constitutional Court does not take on.
3. High Court of South Africa: Since the Seventeenth Amendment, this is a single High Court organised into Divisions. It hears serious civil and criminal cases and constitutional matters.
4. Magistrates’ Courts: Deal with most everyday cases, such as minor crimes and civil disputes.
5. Specialised courts: Include the Labour Court, Land Claims Court, Competition Appeal Court, Electoral Court and Equality Courts.

The Role of the Constitutional Court

• Interprets the Constitution and decides whether Acts of Parliament, provincial Acts and conduct of the President are constitutional.
• Must confirm any order of invalidity made by a lower court on such matters.
• Resolves disputes between organs of state, including between national and provincial government.
• Hears human-rights cases. Landmark examples include S v Makwanyane (1995, abolition of the death penalty), Grootboom (2000, housing), Treatment Action Campaign (2002, HIV treatment), Fourie (2005, same-sex marriage), Nkandla (2016, the President’s duty to comply with the Public Protector) and New Nation Movement (2020, independent candidates).

Judicial Independence

The Constitution says courts are independent and subject only to the Constitution and the law, and that no person or organ of state may interfere with them. Independence is protected by security of tenure (judges can be removed only on specified grounds and by a process involving the Judicial Service Commission and the National Assembly), protected remuneration, and the requirement that judges apply the law impartially. Constitutional Court judges serve a non-renewable term of up to 12 years or until age 70, whichever comes first.

The Appointment of Judges

Judges are not simply chosen by the President or Parliament. The process under section 174 works like this:

1. The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) interviews candidates in public. It includes judges, lawyers, members of Parliament and presidential appointees, and is chaired by the Chief Justice.
2. Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice: The President appoints them after consulting the JSC and the leaders of parties represented in the National Assembly.
3. Other Constitutional Court judges: The President appoints them from a list of nominees prepared by the JSC, after consulting the Chief Justice and party leaders.
4. Other judges: The President appoints them on the advice of the JSC.

The earlier version of these notes said the President appoints judges “with input from Parliament”. More precisely, the consultation is with the leaders of parties in the National Assembly, not Parliament as a body.

Debate: guardians or policy-makers? Defenders of the Constitutional Court see it as the essential check in a system where one party dominated for thirty years, pointing to cases such as Nkandla. Critics worry that unelected judges are deciding questions of social policy, including housing, health care and land, that should be settled by elected bodies. Both views appear in the literature on South Africa; check your prescribed readings for the scholars each side cites.

In short: the judiciary is the guardian of the Constitution, and it is a political actor in practice as well as in law. Court cases have shaped elections, land policy and the powers of the President.

Theme 4: Unitary and Federal System — Cooperative Governance and Local Government

South Africa has three spheres of government, and the DU syllabus lists “Unitary and Federal System” as its own theme. The earlier version of these notes called the section “Federalism” but then described the country as a unitary state without explaining the contradiction. Here is the debate.

Is South Africa Unitary or Federal?

For exams, a balanced answer is that South Africa is a unitary state with strong federal elements, and that the term “cooperative governance” is the Constitution’s own way of avoiding both labels.

Cooperative Governance (Chapter 3)

Chapter 3 requires the three spheres to:

• Preserve national unity and respect each other’s powers and institutions.
• Cooperate in mutual trust and good faith, inform and consult one another and coordinate their actions.
• Avoid legal proceedings against each other, using intergovernmental structures such as the Presidential Coordinating Council (President, Premiers, mayors and ministers) to resolve disputes.

Intergovernmental relations are further regulated by statute, and fiscal relations by the annual Division of Revenue and the equitable share of nationally raised revenue.

Powers of Provincial Governments

There are nine provinces: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West, Northern Cape and Western Cape. Each has a legislature, a Premier and an executive council of Members of the Executive Council (MECs).

The earlier version of these notes placed “agriculture” among the provinces’ own powers. That was incorrect. The Constitution divides provincial powers like this:

• Schedule 4: concurrent powers (national and provincial legislatures can both legislate): include agriculture, education at all levels except tertiary, health services, housing, environment, disaster management, public transport and consumer protection. If the two conflict, national law prevails in many circumstances.
• Schedule 5: exclusive provincial powers: include abattoirs, ambulance services, liquor licences, provincial planning, provincial roads and traffic, and provincial cultural matters. Even here, section 44(2) allows Parliament to intervene in narrow circumstances.
• The national government can also intervene when a province cannot or will not perform its duties.

Powers of Local Government

Local government is a sphere in its own right (Chapter 7). Municipalities are metropolitan, district and local, and are run by elected councils led by mayors. They provide basic services: water, sanitation, electricity distribution, refuse removal, municipal roads and local planning. Provinces and the national government monitor them and can intervene if a municipality is failing in its duties.

The Relationship Between Spheres

• Oversight: Provincial and municipal governments must act within national laws.
• Forums: Bodies such as the Presidential Coordinating Council encourage consultation.
• Funding: National Treasury transfers money to provinces and municipalities.
• Tension: Interventions in failing provinces and municipalities can limit local autonomy, and conflicts sharpen when different parties run different spheres, as the ANC and DA now do in several cases.

Benefits of decentralisation

✅ Brings government closer to the people. ✅ Lets provinces address local needs. ✅ Allows political diversity: different parties govern different provinces and cities.

Problems

❌ Many municipalities lack the capacity to deliver basic services. ❌ Corruption and mismanagement in some provinces and municipalities. ❌ Conflicts between spheres, especially where parties differ. ❌ Heavy dependence on national transfers limits real autonomy.

In short: the practical question is not whether South Africa is “federal” but whether provinces and municipalities have the money and capacity to use the powers they are given.

Important Comparisons

Use this table when a question asks you to compare South Africa with another system in DSC-17.

Further reading: our notes on the United Kingdom, United States and Brazil.

Criticism and Limitations

• Implementation gap: The Constitution promises socio-economic rights, but unemployment (33.6% in Q2 2026) and unequal public services mean many citizens do not experience them.
• Weak local state: Municipal failures drive service-delivery protests and are a major reason for voter dissatisfaction.
• Accountability problems: PR lists strengthen party leaders; state capture showed how institutions can be captured from within.
• Coalition instability: Power-sharing is inclusive but can make decisions slower and more contested.
• Over-reliance on courts: Many disputes that could be settled politically end up in the Constitutional Court.

Contemporary Relevance (as of 31 October 2026)

Coalition Politics and the Local Elections

The 2024 GNU is the biggest change to the political system since 1994. How it fares through the local elections on 4 November 2026 and the ANC’s 2027 leadership conference will shape the build-up to the 2029 national election. The DA’s new leader has said openly that he wants the party to lead national government.

Land and the Expropriation Act

Because the section 25 amendment failed in 2021, the government pursued land reform through ordinary law. The Expropriation Act (Act 13 of 2024) was signed by President Ramaphosa on 20 December 2024 and published in the Government Gazette on 24 January 2025. It replaces a 1975 law and allows, in certain circumstances, compensation of nil if expropriation is just and equitable. Supporters, including the government, argue it brings the law into line with the Constitution. Opponents, including AfriForum, the Institute of Race Relations and, notably, the DA (a GNU partner), have challenged it in court, and in court papers the President acknowledged problems with section 19 of the Act. The Western Cape High Court heard the consolidated challenges in early August 2026. At the time of writing, reports say that no land has been seized under the Act; check for the outcome of the case.

Social Movements

• #RhodesMustFall (2015): Began at the University of Cape Town and put colonial symbols and racism on the national agenda.
• #FeesMustFall (from 2015, strongest in 2015–16): Protested university fees and led to changes in funding.
• Service-delivery protests: Local and recurring, linked to municipal failure.
• Gender-based violence activism: Pressure for stronger protection and enforcement.

Governance Challenges

• Inequality and unemployment: See Theme 2.
• Corruption: The Zondo Commission on state capture, which reported in 2022, documented how public institutions were captured during the Zuma years.
• Crime and policing: High crime rates and concerns about the integrity of policing.
• Political division: Coalition politics creates instability in many municipalities.

Constitutional Change Debates

• Land: The Expropriation Act and the earlier failed section 25 amendment.
• Executive power: Some argue the President has too much power; others want stronger judicial independence.
• Electoral reform: Calls for fuller constituency representation continue despite the 2023 Act.
• Decentralisation: Some provinces, notably the Western Cape, want more powers; others favour stronger national authority.

South Africa in Regional and Global Politics

• Africa: Member of the African Union and of SADC. A SADC mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo, which included South African troops, had its mandate terminated in March 2025, and the troops withdrew from April 2025; earlier notes that said South Africa “sends troops” to the DRC and Mozambique are out of date.
• BRICS: South Africa joined Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2010–11. The group has since expanded, with new members including Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the UAE and Indonesia.
• G20: South Africa held the G20 presidency from December 2024 to November 2025 and hosted the first G20 leaders’ summit on African soil in Johannesburg on 22–23 November 2025. The United States did not send an official delegation and did not endorse the outcome.
• Foreign-policy tensions: Relations with the United States deteriorated over land policy and South Africa’s international positions; the US president issued an order to cut aid to South Africa. Western critics question South Africa’s stance toward Russia and China, while South Africa describes its policy as non-aligned.
• Xenophobia: Tension over migration from neighbouring countries remains a domestic and diplomatic issue.

Revision Timeline

Conclusion

South Africa shows how a country can write a constitution that is ahead of its society. The 1996 Constitution created a strong framework of rights, independent institutions, proportional representation and shared power between national, provincial and local governments. The political system has also shown a capacity to change peacefully, as the 2024 loss of the ANC’s majority and the formation of a coalition show. At the same time, unemployment above 33%, weak municipalities, corruption and the unresolved land question mean that institutions are being asked to deliver more than they currently can. For DU answers, the most useful habit is to link every institution to the history behind it and to the social and economic problems it is meant to solve.

Continue Reading

Continue with the rest of DSC-17 and related material:

• Political System of China — Unit 5 notes: the previous unit, a useful contrast between a constitutional democracy and a single-party system.
• Introduction to Israel’s Political System — Unit 7 notes: the next unit, another proportional representation and coalition system.
• Political System of Brazil — Unit 3 notes: compare federalism and proportional representation.
• Political System of the United Kingdom — Unit 1 notes: compare the Westminster tradition with South Africa’s parliamentary elements.
• DU BA Political Science PYQs 2024–2025: practise with real DU question papers.

University of Delhi Previous Year Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources and Further Reading

• University of Delhi, B.A. (Hons.) Political Science Semester VI syllabus, DSC-17: official syllabus (PDF)
• Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996: Chapter 4, Parliament, Chapter 5, the President and national executive, Chapter 8, Courts
• Constitution Seventeenth Amendment Act, 2012 (Government Gazette)
• Schedule 4 of the Constitution (PDF) and Parliament: how a law is made
• Parliamentary Monitoring Group: 2024 election results
• SAnews: the Electoral Amendment Act and the three ballots
• Electoral Commission: Local Government Elections 2026
• South African History Online: signing of the Constitution, 10 December 1996
• Stats SA via SAnews: unemployment rate, Q2 2026
• SADC press release on the withdrawal from eastern DRC (May 2025)
• The Citizen: Expropriation Act challenge in the Western Cape High Court
• Wikipedia: 2025 G20 Johannesburg summit