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Every vote the African National Congress (ANC) got in the 2024 election cost it just under R20, while at the other end of the scale, it cost Rise Mzansi (RM) nearly R1 000 per vote.

This is according to an analysis conducted on X by veteran political analyst Gareth van Onselen.

Van Onselen looked at the value of donations declared by political parties to the Electoral Commission (IEC) between the first quarter of 2021 and the third quarter of 2025, which is the latest available information. His analysis only included parties that declared more than R10 million in total donations. He then divided the total value of declared donations by the number of votes cast on the national ballot in the 2024 national elections.

According to the IEC: “Political parties, independent representatives and independent candidates, and donors must disclose donations above a cumulative total of R100 000 in a financial year. This means donations of R100 000 or more must be immediately disclosed and any cumulative donations must be disclosed immediately when they exceed the cumulative total of R100 000 during a year. Maximum donation amount for private donors (individuals or entities) is R15 million per year, per party.”

Donations include “in-kind” donations, not just monetary ones.

According to Van Onselen’s analysis the party that had the best value for money was the ANC. Between 2021 and 2025 it received R123 million in declared donations and slightly fewer than 6.5 million votes in the 2024 election, giving it a cost per vote of R19.17.

The next-most cost-effective party – in terms of cost per vote – was the Patriotic Alliance (PA), which declared R15.6 million in donations and won 330 000 votes, a cost of R47.45 per vote.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) was third, having total declared donations of nearly R240 million, and winning 3.5 million votes, in 2024, therefore costing R68.33 per vote.

At the other end of the scale was the ill-fated Change Starts Now, headed by a former civil servant and businessman Roger Jardine. It secured R35 million in donations but did not contest the 2024 poll.

Of parties that did contest the elections, Rise Mzansi’s (RM’s) votes cost its donors the most, at R967.18 per vote, with R65 million in donations and 68 000 votes. ActionSA secured just over R100 million in funding and won just over 192 000 votes, meaning each vote cost R545.19.

Build One South Africa (BOSA) secured R28 million in donations and won 66 000 votes, meaning it cost its donors R426.70 per vote.

Van Onselen notes that while the ANC gives the “best” value –for money he said, “Its vote share is in collapse, so you need to read that figure a bit differently.”

“One thing you can be absolutely sure of – the funders of [ActionSA], RM, and BOSA are not going to be fooled as easily as they were ahead of 2024, and each of those parties is likely to battle to compete with the DA,” said Van Onselen.

Marius Roodt, deputy editor of The Common Sense, said: “It should also be remembered that there are likely significant donations that have not been declared by other political parties, particularly uMkhonto weSizwe and the Economic Freedom Fighters, which have not declared any donations to the IEC. It stretches credulity to think that both these parties have only received donations below the R100 000 declaration threshold.”