Voting day may have come and gone but the storm rages on as to who will nab the top spot. The mighty tumble the ANC took has been compounded by the sharp ascendancy of the MK Party. In an election routinely highlighted as the most significant since 1994, the emergence of new political alternatives to challenge the established political regime seemed especially important and necessary.
However, except for the MK Party’s debut, other political parties such as Rise Mzansi failed to capture the public imagination, having only garnered a single seat in the National Assembly. Much was said about the political viability of these new parties, particularly for those who seemed to attract donors with lots of money.
The seeming correlation between money and votes drove interest around these new parties who appeared to have the market share on private donations. However, what the election results have shown us is that to challenge the political status quo in South Africa requires more than just direct private funding. If a democracy is to thrive, the interests of the people should be equally represented. But if political alternatives cannot adequately compete in the democratic space, how can we stimulate participation without increasing the hold that private money has in our politics?
The relationship between money and democracy has long been a subject of debate. While democracy is founded on principles of equality, representation, and participation, the influence of money in politics raises questions about fairness, accountability, and the integrity of democratic processes. How political representatives obtain and use money for political purposes can play a crucial role in the functioning of democratic systems, shaping electoral outcomes, party competition, and government accountability.
In South Africa, the issue of political financing has been subject to much scrutiny especially in the years following state capture.
Public reform efforts after this deeply entrenched state corruption were aimed at enhancing transparency, accountability, and equality in political parties’ funding. One key aspect to this was the creation of the Political Party Funding Act. This legislation was meant to create a framework of transparency and accountability around private funding to political parties that would allow the public to access crucial information necessary for the exercise of their right to vote, enforce public scrutiny of private donations and compel disclosure of donation and enforce a limit on private donations.
All of this was ultimately to close off opportunities for private interests to undermine politics through large private donations. However, issues of political financing remain a concern as private funding continues to be a large source of income for political parties and undue private influence is still a pressing issue. This is coupled with the fact that as we have just seen, even when you can get private funding it doesn’t always result in votes (and therefore more political representation).
The funding of political candidates and representatives is a critical aspect of democracy where the establishment of competitive party systems is essential for fostering pluralism and representation. However, limited resources, unequal access to finance, over-reliance on private funders and regulatory challenges could hinder growth and sustainability. This is all within a context of preventing possible corruption and undue private interests and presenting the best possible political options to voters.
Whether private or public funding, the need to properly fund political alternatives has never been more important than now, when the political future of South Africa seems especially uncertain
Now that we have seen what may happen when private money is involved in politics what of the other type, public funding? While state public funding holds promise as a tool to curb corruption its efficacy depends on robust regulatory frameworks, effective enforcement mechanisms, and careful design to prevent unintended consequences.
Presently access to public funding is only for represented parties and the public funding framework in South Africa is complicated. This makes the promise of a more accountable politics somewhat limited. Additionally, the reporting, disclosure and publication of public funding has thus far not shown if political parties are more accountable (because of the taxpayer money they receive).
Meanwhile in South Africa, private funding remains one of the largest sources of funding for both represented and unrepresented political candidates and parties. The entrenched nature of private funding is a concern for creating a politics that serves only an elite few. This seems counterintuitive to a political system that needs robust political competition and wants to curb private influence in politics.
The flow of money through the political sphere can threaten key democratic values. Politicians become less responsive and accountable to voters if they are too closely tied to donors, and the equality of political competition is skewed if access to funds becomes a determining factor.
While public funding allocations in South Africa have been revised to level the playing field for political parties that are represented in either the national or provincial legislatures, the numbers are still skewed in favour of larger parties. Globally, there is a rise in understanding that organising well-run elections does nothing for democracy if the outcome is decided by money rather than by the voter, resulting in a crisis of trust.
Whether private or public funding, the need to properly fund political alternatives has never been more important than now, when the political future of South Africa seems especially uncertain.
• Pasensie is a researcher into political party funding
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