Demand for democracy amongst South Africans at all-time low, new study shows

A new study commissioned by the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) shows the demand for democracy amongst South Africans is at an all-time low.

The Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) has made public findings of its latest voter participation survey, which measures public confidence in democracy.

The study reveals that the demand for democracy has moved from 65% in the mid-2000s to a historic 36% in 2026.

The latest study was conducted through face-to-face interviews with citizens aged 16 years old and older across all provinces in the country.

Dr Ben Roberts, the research director at the HSRC, said there’s a growing preference for alternatives to democracy.

“Slightly over one in four people or 26% [of participants] see non-democratic alternatives as acceptable in our country. This is the highest recorded level of the particular preference we’ve seen over the last quarter of a century.”