South Africa elections: Zuma and ANC face test

Image copyright AFP/Getty Images

Image caption The ANC is facing challenges in key cities across South Africa

South Africa"s Jacob Zuma faces a test of his presidency when voters turn out for local elections on Wednesday seen as the most significant in decades.

Mr Zuma"s African National Congress has dominated the political landscape since the first all-race elections in 1994.

But he has had to weather scandal, after being ordered to repay taxpayers" money spent on his private home.

Polls show the ANC may lose three key cities in Wednesday"s poll – Pretoria, Johannesburg and Port Elizabeth.

The ANC, at one point the main anti-apartheid party, is under pressure from two parties – the Democratic Alliance and the Economic Freedom Fighters, who are competing in their first local elections under firebrand leader Julius Malema.

The economy is one of the main issues as people vote, with growth expected to be 0% this year, and unemployment at 27%.

Protests demanding better housing and amenities have also sprung up across South Africa.

Image copyright AFP

Image caption The Nkandla residence has become a political headache for President Zuma

The vote comes a month after South Africa"s treasury recommended President Zuma pay back $509,000 (£381,000) to the government for upgrades made to his private home.

It came after the country"s highest court ruled earlier this year that Mr Zuma repay some of the $23m of public funds spent on his house in 2009, ruling that he had violated the constitution by earlier failing to repay some of the money.

The upgrades included an amphitheatre, pool, chicken run and cattle enclosure.

The next presidential elections are due to take place in 2019.

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South Africa elections: Zuma and ANC face test
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