The long-standing unity among Afrikaner voters that has reliably delivered seats for the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) in Parliament is facing an internal rupture that could fragment their voting bloc.
Mining tycoon Louis Liebenberg’s entry into the electoral fray poses a populist threat capable of siphoning votes from the traditional base of the FF+.
For over two decades, the FF+ and its leader, Pieter Groenewald, have branded themselves as the vanguard of Afrikaner interests in South Africa’s democratic dispensation.
In the 2019 national elections, the party garnered 2.38% of the vote (414 864 ballots) to secure 10 seats in the National Assembly.
Their strongest showings were in the North West with 4.23% of the provincial vote and the Free State at 3.96% with Gauteng coming third with 3.56% of the vote.
However, the party’s grip on the Afrikaans electorate is now under severe strain from Liebenberg’s insurgent candidacy. Netwerk24 reports that the FF+ has lodged objections with the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) over the validity of signatures provided by Liebenberg during his registration process.
For independent candidates to appear on the ballot, 1 000 signatures per province contested are mandated.
According to reports, while Liebenberg furnished 13 427 signatures, objections have led to his alleged removal from the Limpopo and North West ballots amid claimed duplications and invalid signees.
Liebenberg remains on the Gauteng and Free State ballots as these signatures were verified according to the IEC and therefore are valid.
Liebenberg has vehemently rejected these accusations, vowing to challenge the matter in the Electoral Court while taking his case to the campaign trail.
“I have long advocated for all South Africans, not just a segment. It would appear that by virtue of being an Afrikaans-born South African, my very presence on the ballot threatens Groenewald,” Liebenberg retorted when quizzed on the objections of the FF+.
He elaborated: “I have never hidden my belief that it is time for Afrikaans-speaking South Africans to put the past behind them and work alongside their countrymen to build a stronger nation based on patriotism, not language.”
Excoriating Groenewald, Liebenberg quipped: “My friendship with president Jacob Zuma is highly divisive in the eyes of individuals such as Groenewald, who prefer to campaign on the back of Afrikaner nationalism rather than for the benefit of the entire country. He has exploited this point and his parliamentary position to constantly vilify me. I imagine the fact I support president Zuma openly is a bone of huge contention for him, especially considering the fact I am throwing my weight behind him in the provinces I am not contesting.
“However, now that I am next to him on the ballot, he is clearly sweating because many within the community crave peace; they yearn for a place within the country, and in that, they cannot vote for someone or a party that has built their entire identity on the idea that they are the mouthpiece of a disenfranchised and targeted population.”
Liebenberg has been unequivocal about his campaign principles – that South Africans need a voice to stand up for issues affecting their lives. Putting his money where his mouth is, Liebenberg has spearheaded a pilot project on his mines that has seen 300 artisanal miners, traditionally shunned as “zama-zamas”, trained in safety procedures and given the chance to legally mine, providing much-needed relief to impoverished families in Namaqualand.
The project will expand to 5 000 jobs by the end of 2027.
“It always amazes me that politicians sit in their ivory towers speaking for people they have never met. I am on the ground making a difference every single day. This is what inspired me to throw my name into the mix.”
As he launches his electoral bid, Liebenberg now poses an existential threat to the FF+’s core Afrikaans constituencies. Groenewald can ill afford an erosion from this insurgent populist that siphons away votes in key provinces like Gauteng and the Free State.
“Groenewald is clearly worried if, within weeks, I have been the subject of his party’s concerns with the IEC twice. Thank goodness their true colours and fears are being exposed early enough for voters to reconsider that valuable X on the ballot,” Liebenberg concluded, ominously.