CBS News
South Africa set for new coalition government as the late Nelson Mandela’s ANC is forced to share power
Johannesburg — After talks that carried on late into Thursday night, Friday morning brought news that South Africa would soon have its first coalition government. Uncertainty had reigned since the late Nelson Mandela’s party, the long-ruling African National Congress, lost its majority in May’s national election.
The ANC said Thursday that it would partner with other political parties to form a Government of National Unity —similar to the route Mandela himself chose after the historic election that brought him to power as the country’s first democratically elected president in 1994. But who would join the ANC, now led by incumbent President Cyril Rampaphosa, remained unclear until late Friday morning.
In the end, it wasn’t a deal for a unity government that emerged, but a coalition between the ANC and its biggest rivals, the Democratic Alliance party, as well as several other smaller parties who received a much smaller share of May’s vote. The deal was announced on Friday morning as new and returning lawmakers were being sworn into their roles in the parliament.
PAP/Getty
The DA agreed to support Ramaphosa’s election to a second term as president, with an ANC leader as Speaker of the Parliament and a DA leader as Deputy Speaker. The rest of the details, and ministerial positions, were still being finalized.
Earlier, the ANC had announced that several parties would form a government of national unity, including the Democratic Alliance and the Economic Freedom Front, prompting some critics to say the ANC was working with “white parties.” EFF leader Julius Malema, whose party won 9% of the vote, had said earlier that his party would not join a unity government with the former “oppressor parties.”
The controversy was addressed late Thursday night by ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula, who told journalists: “To us it doesn’t matter whether the cat is black or white… The question is how do we move the country forward.”
Dwayne Senior/Bloomberg/Getty
The DA, the main opposition party, has been favored by South African business leaders and won the second highest number of votes nationally, at close to 22%. Its leadership had said earlier that they would not join any unity government that included the EFF.
The MK Party of former President Jacob Zuma, a fierce critic of Ramaphosa, which swept to a surprise third place in last month’s national election, said it would not work with the ANC if the incumbent remained its leader.
Zuma has a long history of acrimony with Ramaphosa, who was elected president of the ANC after it ousted Zuma as a member over multiple corruption charges, which he has always denied, claiming to be a victim of wrongful persecution.
CBS News
German soccer club St. Pauli quits X ahead of snap elections, calls platform a “hate machine”
A German soccer club is leaving X because of the increase in hate speech and disinformation on the social media platform that it claims could undermine the snap elections in the country.
FC St. Pauli announced the decision on Thursday, saying billionaire owner Elon Musk has turned the platform into a “hate machine” since he took over the company in 2022.
“Racism and conspiracy theories are allowed to spread unchecked and even curated,” St. Pauli said in a statement. “Insults and threats are seldom sanctioned and are sold as freedom of speech.”
The club said it had already limited posts on X and increased “political statements in support of diversity and inclusion to make a stand against hate.”
Selim Sudheimer / Getty Images
Named after Hamburg’s St. Pauli district, the club, which plays in the Bundesliga, is known among soccer fans for its left-leaning supporter base. Fan groups often chant anti-racist slogans and promote diversity within the club.
St. Pauli also underlined Musk’s role in last week’s U.S. presidential election, and alleged his platform could affect the outcome of the snap elections in Germany, which are scheduled to take place next February, by “manipulating the public discourse.”
“Musk was a major backer of the Trump campaign and also used X for this purpose,” the club said. “It is to be assumed that X will also promote authoritarian, misanthropic and far-right content during the forthcoming German election campaign.”
St. Pauli said it would no longer share content on X but it will not deactivate the account. The club urged supporters to follow its updates on Bluesky, an alternative social media platform that has observed a surge of new members after President-elect Donald Trump’s election victory last week.
Musk was a key figure in Trump’s third election campaign, donating millions of dollars and promoting content for his message on X. Trump announced this week that he will be part of the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency alongside fellow billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur who sought the Republican Party’s nomination.
On Nov. 6, the German coalition government collapsed after Chancellor Olaf Scholz dismissed the finance minister, who represented the pro-business Free Democratic Party. The chancellor will seek a vote of confidence at the German Bundestag in December.
St. Pauli aims to migrate its nearly 250,000 followers ahead of February’s snap elections in Germany in which the center-right opposition Christian Democratic Union is expected to make significant gains.
The far-right Alternative for Germany party has also gained popularity. With 76 seats, it is the fifth largest party in the Bundestag. In September’s Thuringian state election, the AfD became the first far-right party in Germany to have won an election since World War II.
CBS News
Trump meets with Argentina’s president, the first foreign leader he’s met with since election
Donald Trump met Thursday at his Mar-a-Lago club with Argentine President Javier Milei, the first foreign leader to meet with the president-elect since his victory in last week’s election.
The meeting was confirmed by a person who insisted on anonymity to discuss an event that hadn’t yet been announced publicly. The person said the meeting went well and said Milei also met with investors.
A short time later, Milei, a self-described “anarcho-capitalist” and frequent recipient of Trump praise, addressed the America First Policy Institute gala at Mar-a-Lago. He slammed left-wing ideologies and saluted Elon Musk, the owner of X, saying his social media site is helping to “save humanity.”
Trump also spoke to the gala crowd, congratulating Milei “for the job you’ve done for Argentina” and saying it was an “honor” to have Argentina’s president at Mar-a-Lago.
“The job you’ve done is incredible. Make Argentina Great Again, you know, MAGA. He’s a MAGA person,” Trump said to applause. “And you know, he’s doing that.”
Shortly after Milei’s election in November 2023, Trump posted on social media, “You will turn your country around and truly Make Argentina Great Again!”
Milei first met Trump in February at the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, in the Washington area. He has openly declared his admiration for Trump and when he saw him, he rushed to him screaming “president!” and gave him a close hug before they posed for pictures.
The Argentine president is known for his eccentric personality and first made a name for himself by shouting against Argentina’s “political caste” on television. The right-wing populist campaigned with a chainsaw as his prop to symbolize his plans to slash public spending and scrap government ministries.
Watch CBS News
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
German soccer club St. Pauli quits X ahead of snap elections, calls platform a “hate machine”
Minnesota man killed while serving as missionary in Angola
Trump meets with Argentina’s president, the first foreign leader he’s met with since election
German soccer club St. Pauli quits X ahead of snap elections, calls platform a “hate machine”
Minnesota man killed while serving as missionary in Angola