Emergence in The 1980s
Under the leadership of Jaap Marais, who replaced the retiring Hertzog in 1977, the party emerged as a notable force amongst white South Africans. In 1979 the evidence of its potential was demonstrated in a series of by-elections when it suddenly began to threaten the position of the ruling party. Despite eventually obtaining a non-negligible amount of support (13.1% in 1981 elections), the HNP never managed to gain seats in the South African parliament at a general election (although they registered a by-election success at Sasolburg in 1985), and soon became a voice of external opposition. The HNP effectively became the chief voice of the far right opposition at this time, particularly in 1989 when both the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging and the Boerestaat Party declared their support for Marais. The group's only previous contact with other parties had been in 1985 when it briefly co-operated with the Conservative Party to oppose the repeal of the Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act and the Immorality Amendment Act by P.W. Botha.
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