From assisting with the hand-washing of clothes, braiding hair, fetching water in buckets and cleaning your backyard for you, volunteers from political parties such as the ANC, EFF, IFP and the MK Party are going the extra mile in their pursuit for votes ahead of the May 29 elections.
Doing door-to-door campaigns in townships and rural areas has long been a mainstay of South African politics, but this year, with competition at its zenith, volunteers of political parties are being forced to do more than just hand out T-shirts and pamphlets in exchange for votes.
It would appear the strategy is that of active service and leaving an indelible mark.
Why so much effort?
Several election polls have predicted the governing African National Congress could fail to get more than 50% of the vote for the first time. The ANC won the 2019 elections with 57% of the vote after securing over 10 million votes nationally.
The ANC is targeting 11 million votes in the May elections, but it will be a hard task, with fierce contestation of votes in Gauteng and KZN, the two biggest provinces in the country.
Between Gauteng and KZN - 2.4 and 2 million votes respectively - the ANC secured 4.4 million votes in the last general elections, more than 40% of their entire national votes.
In KZN, a resurgent Inkatha Freedom Party and the emergence of former president Jacob Zuma’s Umkhonto Wesizwe Party (MKP), has created a conundrum which will see the vote split drastically in that province.
In Gauteng, the entry of new parties such as the Rise Mzansi, Build One South Africa and ActionSA are also expected to make some impact in that province.
The latest poll by Ipsos shows:
| ANC | 40.2% |
| DA | 21.9% |
| EFF | 11.5% |
| MK Party | 8.4% |
| IFP | 4.4% |
| ActionSA | 3.4% |
| FF+ | 1.8% |
So it should come as no surprise that political parties such as the established ANC, EFF and IFP, are trying all they can to remain in the hearts and minds of voters, particularly in the rural and township areas.
Political parties appear to be willing to do almost anything to secure votes.
Avela Mjajubana, a member of the ANC Youth League's (ANCYL) National Executive Committee (NEC), has been leading the charge on social media for the ANC.
In photos posted on X, Mjajubana can be seen washing clothes, braiding hair, driving party branded minibus taxis and drinking with potential voters while participating in door-to-door campaigns.
During the door-to-door campaign at Saulsville hostel in Atteridgeville, Pretoria, Tsakani Shiviti, another ANC volunteer, was also spotted braiding a woman's hair.
Other volunteers have been spotted doing all manner of things, such as gatecrashing weddings, playing with babies and other things.
In Polokwane, an MKP volunteer was seen tidying the yard of an elderly woman, while X user KulfiStar71967 posted a photo showing a member of the MKP also braiding the hair of a young girl seated on a chair.
In the West Rand, members of the EFF were spotted cleaning a clinic while wearing their party branded T-shirts showing the party's name in bold, urging people to vote for them.
In Bekkersdal, Randfontein, some members were seen aiding community members in fetching water in buckets.
Who will get your vote on May 29?
IOL