Electoral Results
The following table shows the electoral performance of the Democratic Party and its predecessors in elections to the House of Assembly prior to 1994. These elections were restricted to white citizens.
| Election | Party name | Total votes | Share of votes | Seats | Share of seats | Party Leader(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Progressive Party | 69,045 | 8.6% | 1 | 0.6% | Steytler !Jan Steytler | National Party (NP) victory |
| 1966 | Progressive Party | 39,717 | 3.1% | 1 | 0.6% | Steytler !Jan Steytler | NP victory |
| 1970 | Progressive Party | 51,760 | 3.5% | 1 | 0.6% | Steytler !Jan Steytler | NP victory |
| 1974 | Progressive Party | 58,768 | 5.3% | 7 | 4.1% | Eglin !Colin Eglin | NP victory |
| 1977 | Progressive Federal Party | 177,705 | 16.7% | 17 | 10.3% | Eglin !Colin Eglin | NP victory; PFP gains official opposition status from United Party |
| 1981 | Progressive Federal Party | 265,297 | 19.4% | 27 | 15.2% | van Zyl Slabbert !Frederik van Zyl Slabbert | NP victory; PFP remains official opposition |
| 1987 | Progressive Federal Party | 288,579 | 13.9% | 20 | 11.2% | Eglin !Colin Eglin | NP victory; PFP loses official opposition status to Conservative Party |
| 1989 | Democratic Party | 431,444 | 20.0% | 34 | 19.1% | de Beer !Zach de Beer, Denis Worrall and Wynand Malan | NP victory |
The following table shows electoral performance for the Democratic Party and the Democratic Alliance in elections to the National Assembly since the advent of democracy in 1994.
| Election | Total votes | Share of votes | Seats | Share of seats | Party Leader | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 338,426 | 1.73% | 7 | 1.75% | de Beer !Zach de Beer | ANC victory |
| 1999 | 1,527,337 | 9.56% | 38 | 9.50% | Leon !Tony Leon | ANC victory; DP becomes official opposition |
| 2004 | 1,931,201 | 12.37% | 50 | 12.50% | Leon !Tony Leon | ANC victory; DA retains official opposition status |
| 2009 | 2,945,829 | 16.66% | 67 | 16.75% | Zille !Helen Zille | ANC victory; DA retains official opposition status and wins Western Cape province |
Read more about this topic: History Of The Democratic Alliance (South Africa)
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