South Africa: Race a Defining Issue in the Upcoming Election

The announcement, Monday, that South Africa will go to the polls on April 14 for its third democratic election has opened the way for political parties to start campaigning in earnest. But, analysts are already predicting that the ruling African National Congress will be returned to power with a sweeping majority. "Voter support for the African National Congress (ANC) is stable, as evidenced in the 1994 and 1999 general elections, as well as from recent opinion polls,” said Tom Lodge, a political science lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg.