by Zodidi Mhlana, Jing Jing and Wang Xiaopeng

JOHANNESBURG, May 8 (Xinhua) -- South Africans are flocking to about 23,000 voting stations across the nation on Wednesday to cast ballots that will determine which party is to rule the country in the next five years.

The election, the country's sixth general election since the first such by the nation in 1994, is described by the media as a crucial one for the country and its current ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC).

ANC LEADING POPULARITY

A survey revealed Monday by Ipsos, a global market researcher, showed ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa was leading the popularity stakes, scoring 6.5 points out of 10, while Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Mmusi Maimane and the Economic Freedom Fighters' (EFF's) Julius Malema coming in second and third with 3.5 and 3.4 points respectively.

The results indicated that the performance of Ramaphosa, along with the ANC, is recognized by the the majority of the people in the country.

South Africa's current electoral system permits people to be chosen as public representatives on political party tickets but not as individuals.

"It's a political party that then chooses its leader of the country through the proportional representation system," political analyst Shadrack Gutto told Xinhua.

Another poll by the Institute of Race Relations has shown the ANC would bag about 53 percent of the vote nationally, with the DA likely to obtain 24 percent and the EFF 14 percent, if the turnout is around 70 percent.

LOW YOUTHS TURNOUT

Some have expressed concerns about the dwindling number of young people participating in this year's election, in which 26.7 million voters are expected.

During the registration period, the Independent Electoral Commission visited universities to encourage young people to vote, but the number of the youth registered to vote has declined since 2014.

There are 341,236 youths aged 18-19 registered to vote on Wednesday, but the figure was 643,133 in 2014. The number for the 20-29 age group also decreased, down from 5,759,236 to 5,299,297.

Gutto said that behind the decline were socio-economic problems, which impact the young people most.

"Young people are dissatisfied. Corruption is going up, unemployment is growing and it affects the youth. They are the ones entering the job market," he said.

Jannie Rossouw, head of School of Economic and Business Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand, said South Africa's youths might be unhappy with the levels of politics. They might not have confidence in any of the political parties, the political arena or the politicians.

"Politicians have not led by example especially over the past five years. It's voter apathy," Rossouw said.

EMERGING FORCES

Rossouw said a stable government is essential for boosting investment and economic growth in South Africa. So, if the ANC has a comfortable margin above 50 percent, it will ensure stability. It will also mean that Ramaphosa has a lot of work to do.

Though the ANC is still the first choice for most voters, the rapid rising of EFF cannot be ignored.

Polls predict that the EFF is the only political party set to gain ground during the elections.

Established six years ago by former ANC Youth League President Julius Malema, it obtained over 6 percent of the vote in its first election in 2014 and the number is predicted to be around 14 percent this time.

Gutto cited EFF's great mobilization ability and young leadership as some of the reasons behind its growth.

"EFF has been great at mobilizing at grassroots level. They have been able to reach out to the youth voters because they are led by the youth," Gutto said.

According to Rossouw, the EFF has been running an influential campaign led by its leader Malema. "I don't think the DA will grow that much because of other issues they've been grappling with," Rossouw said.

Gutto said the ANC could no longer rely on its glorious past to win support, instead it should root out corruption and widespread looting that became a norm under former President Jacob Zuma's administration.

"This is a party of Nelson Mandela, or Tambo, but young people are not keen on voting for the past," he said. "The party can't be resting on the laurels of its past leaders."

As Ramaphosa said in the final ANC rally, "This is a decisive moment in our history ... a moment when we have to choose between the past and the future." Enditem

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