DA wins second Eastern Cape SRC election

Port Elizabeth – Despite campaigning by EFF and ANC bigwigs ahead of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University student representative council (SRC) elections, the DA has retained its hold on the council with a 60% victory.

The Democratic Alliance Student Organisation (Daso) won 12 of the 20 seats in Wednesday’s SRC election, the party said in a statement.

The ANC-aligned South African Students Congress (Sasco) won seven of the seats and the Economic Freedom Fighters one.

EFF leader Julius Malema and the ANC’s Malusi Gigaba campaigned in Port Elizabeth on Tuesday ahead of the SRC elections.

The DA’s interim youth leader, Yusuf Cassim, said the victory for the party on campus was indicative of growing youth support for the official opposition party in Nelson Mandela Bay.

“The DA is set on winning Nelson Mandela Bay in next year’s [local government] election with the continued support of our young voters,” Cassim said.

This is the second university in the Eastern Cape, usually seen as an African National Congress-aligned province, where the DA has won an SRC election.

In May, Daso won the SRC of Fort Hare University. The university has been home to great ANC leaders, and has always been a stronghold of the ANC.

Sasco, which has had tight control over the SRC for the past two years, only managed to secure 37% of the vote.

Genevieve Quintal, News24