The mystery EFF voter in Orania strikes again

There is apparently still an Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) supporter in Orania and whoever they are, they have managed to keep their political preference alive for another election.

Results from the 2026 local government elections show that the EFF received just one vote in the Vluytjeskraal Farm voting district in Orania, the Northern Cape town known for its strong Afrikaner cultural identity and overwhelmingly conservative political support.

The result has once again attracted attention because it mirrors what happened during the 2024 national and provincial elections, when the EFF also received a single vote in the town.

In the latest results, the Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus) dominated with 204 votes, followed by the Democratic Alliance (DA) with 23. The Patriotic Alliance received one vote, while four ballots were spoilt.

Orania was established in 1991 as a settlement intended to preserve Afrikaner culture, language and self-determination. Its political identity has remained a subject of national debate, particularly because of its approach to cultural preservation, residency and racial exclusion.

The EFF, meanwhile, has been among the most vocal political parties opposing the town’s model, previously launching its “Orania Must Fall” campaign and questioning whether the settlement’s practices are compatible with South Africa’s constitutional commitment to non-racialism and equality. This makes the single vote particularly intriguing.

When the EFF received one vote in Orania in 2024, the result sparked jokes and speculation on social media, with some South Africans celebrating the unidentified voter as a rebel and others joking about whether the person would be discovered.

The latest result has revived that curiosity, although there is no evidence that the 2024 and 2026 votes came from the same person.

For now, the identity of Orania’s EFF supporter remains a mystery. But one thing is certain, amid hundreds of ballots cast in a town where the party has little visible support, the red berets have once again managed to secure a place on the results sheet.