Reform of BEE Supported by ANC and Black Voters – Poll

Most voters in South Africa support reform of the policy of black economic empowerment (BEE).

This is according to a survey conducted by the Social Research Foundation (SRF) in late 2025.*

In that survey the following statement was put to respondents: “The Democratic Alliance (DA) recently proposed a new policy. Its policy suggests that BEE be replaced by an empowerment policy that uses poverty, not race, to determine who is in need of upliftment. It argues that BEE has been abused to benefit an elite few, and its new policy will benefit those who really need it.”

Respondents could say whether they agreed strongly or somewhat with the DA’s policy or disagreed strongly or somewhat.

Of all voters, 54% said they agreed strongly, and 13% agreed somewhat. Only five percent disagreed somewhat and 20% disagreed strongly. The balance of respondents were unsure or refused to answer.

Broken down by race, all of South Africa’s population groups agreed to some extent with the DA’s policy.

Forty-nine percent of black voters agreed strongly with the DA’s policy, and 12% agreed somewhat. The proportion that disagreed strongly was 26%, with 6% disagreeing somewhat.

Among coloured voters 63% agreed strongly with the DA’s policy and 23% agreed somewhat, with 4% disagreeing strongly and 5% disagreeing somewhat.

Among Indian voters 65% agreed strongly and 11% somewhat, while 17% disagreed strongly and none somewhat.

Seventy-two percent of white voters agreed strongly with the DA’s policy proposal and 16% agreed somewhat, while 4% disagreed strongly and 2% somewhat.

A majority of African National Congress voters agreed strongly with the proposal at 51%, with 10% agreeing somewhat, and 21% disagreeing strongly and 7% disagreeing somewhat.

A strong majority of DA voters agreed, with 74% agreeing strongly and 13% somewhat. However, 7% disagreed strongly and 1% somewhat.

There were also strong levels of support for the proposal from parties diametrically opposed to most of the DA’s policy positions, such as the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP).

Forty-five percent of EFF voters supported the DA proposal strongly, and 13% somewhat. However, 33% disagreed strongly and 9% somewhat.

Among MKP voters 36% agreed strongly with the DA’s proposal and 16% agreed somewhat. The proportion of MKP voters that disagreed strongly was 40%, with 1% disagreeing somewhat.

For people who don't really understand South Africa, the data may seem surprising. But South Africa is a far more centrist and pragmatic country than elite opinion and legacy media reporting would have people believe.

It is not uncommon to find that there is considerable agreement among South Africans of different socio-economic, racial, religious, and political backgrounds on the type of sensible policy reforms that would position the country as a more attractive and effective business destination.

*The Social Research Foundation’s Q4 2025 Market Survey was commissioned by the Foundation and conducted by Victory Research among 1 002 registered voters between 27 October and 14 November 2025 using telephonic CATI interviews. A single-frame random digit-dialling design was used, drawing from all possible South African mobile numbers to ensure that every number had an equal probability of selection, with national sim card penetration exceeding 250%, more than 90% of adults owning a phone, and mobile networks covering 99.8% of the population, giving universal practical coverage. The sample was fully weighted to match the national registered voter population across all key demographics, including language, age, race, gender, education, income, and urban or rural location. Turnout modelling assigned each respondent a probability of voting based on questions measuring their likelihood of participation, with the primary turnout model set at 52.8%. The poll carries a 4.0% margin of error at a 95% confidence level, with a design effect of 1.762.