Most People Think SA Going in Wrong Direction – Survey

Most South Africans believe that the country is moving in the wrong direction, with a strong majority of African National Congress (ANC) voters believing this.

This is according to a survey* conducted by the Social Research Foundation in November.

Respondents were asked if they thought South Africa was moving in the right direction or the wrong direction.

Fifteen percent of all voters said it was moving in the right direction and 78% said they believed it was moving in the wrong direction.

Only 18% of ANC supporters believed the country was moving in the right direction and 77% believed it was moving in the wrong direction.

Supporters of the Democratic Alliance had similar views – 15% believed the country was moving in the right direction, with 76% believing it was moving in the wrong direction.

Thirty percent of Economic Freedom Fighters supporters said the country was moving in the right direction and 70% in the wrong direction.

The proportion of uMkhonto weSizwe voters who believed the country was moving in the right direction was 22%, with 70% believing it is moving in the wrong direction.

Across South Africa’s race groups feelings were similar. Amongst black respondents 13% felt South Africa was moving in the right direction and 79% that it was moving in the wrong direction, while 17% of coloured people felt the country was moving in the right direction and 80% that it was moving in the wrong direction.

Eighteen percent of Indian respondents said South Africa was moving in the right direction and 73% that it was going in the wrong direction, and amongst white respondents 21% said it was going in the right direction and 74% that it was going in the wrong direction.

Marius Roodt, deputy editor of The Common Sense, said that the polling had to be interrogated with some nuance.

“In most countries around the world, when you ask people this type of question, most people say that their country is moving in the wrong direction. It is often a direct reflection of people’s material circumstances and in South Africa, which has had nearly two decades of poor economic growth it is not surprising most people feel like this,” Roodt said.

However, he noted that SRF polling also showed that most people felt positive about the Government of National Unity (GNU).

“People are complex and when you look at this type of polling it is important to view it with some nuance. It is perfectly reasonable that people will believe that South Africa is moving in the wrong direction, while having a positive view of the current coalition government setup and the work that it’s doing,” he said.

“It is not contradictory to hold these two views and shows that South African voters are more sophisticated than they are often given credit for,” Roodt said.

Roodt also pointed out that a there had already been a number of real successes coming out of the GNU, and the country’s economy could finally be starting to turn the corner.

*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.