With more than one million votes, the DA secured their crown jewel – Western Cape, with 98% of votes in the province captured.

At a final media briefing in Cape Town on Friday, the IEC in the province revealed voter turnout was 66.6%, but this lowered turnout rate was still enough to secure a DA majority.

Courtney Sampson, IEC Western Cape provincial electoral officer, said the 66% turnout was 6% less compared to the 2014 elections.

During the briefing, Sampson told Alan Winde, the DA premier candidate in the province:

“Alan Winde, you may now become the next premier candidate if your colleagues in the legislature decide to vote for you.”

But for Winde and the party, there are issues the party needs to address in the province.

Winde told Daily Maverick he and his team, in the next coming days, will make“more concrete” plans on core campaign issues – public transport, policing, safety and crime.

Alan Winde was MEC for Community Safety before the election.

ANC Head of Elections Ebrahim Rasool, said the DA needed to focus on housing and will keep a tight squeeze on the party’s promises on crime.

Internally for the ANC, Rasool said the most important part was now for the ANC to create a “good, strong and activist opposition” in the legislature.

The third biggest party in the province, the EFF told Daily Maverick the DA needed to focus on land for housing, sanitation, water and electricity.

Melikhaya Xego, EFF provincial chairperson, told Daily Maverick that while the party had accepted that they had not won the province, they had “shown growth” in the province. In 2014, the party had won 2.11% of the vote – but provisional results show the party is at 3,98%.

Ultimately, the “DA must, first of all, go down to the people,” said Xego.

In fourth place is Good, with 3%,  in fifth place ACDP at 2.66% and FF+ in sixth  place at 1.57%. DM