Steenhuisen refuses to rule out ANC talks post-election
DA leader John Steenhuisen has refused to rule out a post-election coalition with the ANC should the opportunity present itself.
Steenhuisen told the media at the Independent Electoral Commission’s results centre in Midrand that the DA would, however, give priority to the members of the multi-party charter.
"I am not ruling out anything at this stage,” Steenhuisen said.
“You do not rule out anything until the boards have the final results, but I will say this: The Democratic Alliance has emerged as the second-strongest party in the country.
"We are a responsible political party; we adopt the position that we put the country first, and in this instance, we are going to make sure that whatever we do, we will put the interests of South Africa first.”
The DA stood on nearly 23% of the national ballot with 62% of the voting districts completed, behind the ANC’s 42%.
Steenhuisen reacted to the glitches on the results dashboard earlier on Friday by saying the IEC must be held accountable.
"I don't think there is any shenanigans going on behind the scenes, but I do think that the IEC needs to be held liable for the shambles. Their failure to perform has disenfranchised South Africans.
"We are not going to let the IEC get away with this again. They promised us after 2021 that they were going to fix things.
"Well, the proof is now on the table for everyone to see. It was a complete shambolic state of affairs. To those who stayed in the queue to cast their vote, I want to say thank you. Obviously, to those who cannot cast their vote, I am going to make sure that the IEC is held accountable.
"The IEC has one job and years to prepare for it, and then you produce this dog's breakfast of an election. Something is wrong, and people need to be held accountable".
The DA also remained on course to hold on to power in the Western Cape.
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