Browsing by Author "Calvert, Marcus"
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- ItemPopulism in South African politics? An analysis of the EFF election manifestos in 2014 and 2019(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2021-12) Calvert, Marcus; Steenekamp, Cindy Lee; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Political Science.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Following the end of apartheid and the establishment of democracy in the Republic of South Africa following the first democratic election in 1994, South Africa has been seen as “the miracle” of Africa (Booysen, 2018). The effects of apartheid continue to be felt, with those who were previously marginalized during apartheid, seeing little to no improvement in their lives (Bhorat & Kanbur, 2015:4). The political landscape has been dominated since 1994, by the two main political parties, the African National Congress (ANC) and their opposition the Democratic Alliance (DA), with each party presenting their own policies for the betterment of the country and lives of the citizens (Southall, 2020). The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) were established as a result of a split within the ANC Youth League (ANCYL) and the expulsion of the ANCYL leader, Julius Malema, in 2013 (Feketha, 2020). The EFF has seen success, with an increase in their support from the first national election they competed in, in 2014, and the most recent national election in 2019 (IEC, 2019). The EFF have presented more radical policies and ideas, and are self-described as “...Marxist-Leninist...” and brands the party as “a radical and militant economic emancipation movement” (EFF, 2020). Their left-wing policies and ideology has seen them being labelled as populist, and it is this which forms the focal point of the study. The study undertook to answer whether the EFF can be considered populist, and secondly, whether it has become more or less populist based on the rhetoric employed in their 2014 and 2019 electoral manifestos. The study provided a review of the literature of populism in order to arrive at the definition of populism, but also various approaches to populism, the causes of populism and the threat of populism. Hawkins (2009) provided a framework which was used, alongside Thematic Analysis (TA), to provide the data which formed the basis of the analysis. The findings were analysed and interpreted in order to determine that the EFF can be considered populist, based on the rhetoric used in their 2014 and 2019 electoral manifestos. In terms of whether the EFF have become more or less populist based on the rhetoric employed in their 2014 and 2019 manifesto, the conclusion which was reached was that the party had become more populist. The study had added to the literature regarding populism and given a different perspective to analysing populism in the context of South Africa.