The Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus or FF+; , ''VF Plus'') is a

right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...

political party in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

that was formed (as the Freedom Front) in 1994. It is led by Corné Mulder. Since 2024, it is a part of the current South African government of national unity together with the

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a political party in South Africa. It originated as a liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid and has governed the country since 1994, when the 1994 South African general election, fir ...

(ANC), the Democratic Alliance and other parties.

History

Origins as the Freedom Front (19942003)

The Freedom Front was founded on 1 March 1994 by members of the Afrikaner community under Constand Viljoen, after he had left the Afrikaner Volksfront amidst disagreements. Seeking to achieve his goals through electoral means, Viljoen registered the Freedom Front with the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) on 4 March 1994 to take part in the April 1994 general elections (This date has also been given as 7 March). On 12 March 1994 Viljoen handed in a list of candidates for the FF to the IEC, confirming that his party would take part in the elections. In the election, under the leadership of Viljoen, the Freedom Front received 2.2% of the national vote (with 424,555 votes cast), earning nine seats in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

, and 3.3% (with 639,643 votes cast) of the combined vote to the nine provincial legislatures. This suggested that many Afrikaners had split their vote. The party performed the best in the rural areas of the former Transvaal and

Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( ; ) was an independent Boer-ruled sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeated and surrendered to the British Em ...

, and was noted by the new deputy president

Thabo Mbeki Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki (; born 18 June 1942) is a South African politician who served as the 2nd democratic president of South Africa from 14 June 1999 to 24 September 2008, when he resigned at the request of his party, the African National Cong ...

as representing possibly as much as half the Afrikaner voting population in these areas, with the strongest support among farmers and the working class. Freedom Front support gradually eroded in the coming years, as the party was strung along in ultimately fruitless negotiations with the

(ANC) to create a

Volkstaat A Volkstaat (, ), also called a Boerestaat, is a proposed white ethnostate, White homeland for Afrikaners within the borders of South Africa, most commonly proposed as a Afrikaner nationalism, fully independent Boer/Afrikaner nation. The propos ...

making the party lose its importance. It would also receive increased competition from new parties such as the Afrikaner Eenheidsbeweging. In the 1999 election their support dropped to 0.8% (127,217 votes cast) with three seats in the National Assembly and between 1 and 2% in its stronghold provinces. This represented a respectable portion of the Afrikaner vote, but nowhere near earlier levels. The party's support remained relatively stable in all national elections held during the next twenty years. In 2001, Viljoen retired and

Pieter Mulder Pieter Willem Adriaan Mulder (born 26 July 1951) is a South African politician and the former leader of the Freedom Front Plus. He served as the Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (South Africa), Minister of Agriculture, Fore ...

was elected as leader.

Formation of the FF+ and early years (20032016)

In 2003, shortly before the 2004 general election, the Conservative Party, the Afrikaner Eenheidsbeweging and the Freedom Front decided to contest the election as a single entity under the name Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus or FF+), led by Mulder. Later, the Federal Alliance also joined the VF+/FF+. Under Mulder's leadership the party's support remained relatively stable. In the 2004 general election, support for the Freedom Front Plus rose slightly to 0.89% (139,465 votes cast). The party won one seat in most of the provincial legislatures, and four seats in the National Assembly. In the 2006 municipal elections, the FF Plus received 1% of the popular vote (252,253 votes cast). In the 2009 general election, the party received 0.83% (146,796 votes cast) and retained its four seats in the National Assembly but lost its seats in the provincial legislatures of North West, Mpumalanga and Northern Cape. After the elections, the FF Plus's leader Pieter Mulder was appointed as Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries by the new President

Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan names Nxamalala and Msholozi. Zuma was a for ...

. In the 2014 general election, the FF Plus increased its vote slightly to 0.9%. It retained its 4 MPs, and also regained a seat in the North West. The party also enjoyed consistent landslide victories in the Afrikaner enclave

Orania Orania () is a Volkstaat, white separatistSources for "white separatist": * * * Additional sources for "whites-only": * * * South Africa, South African town founded by Afrikaners. It is located along the Orange River in the Karoo region o ...

. Along with other parties, the FF Plus entered into coalition with the Democratic Alliance (DA) after the 2016 municipal elections to govern

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

, Tshwane and several other municipalities.

Groenewald leadership and resurgence (2016present)

In 2016, Pieter Groenewald took over leadership of the FF Plus. He oversaw a pivot of the party away from being an exclusive abode for Afrikaners to that of one for all minorities, with a special focus on Afrikaans-speaking minorities. This was highlighted when the FF Plus and the Bruin Bemagtiging Beweging (Brown Movement) an interest group focused on Coloureds led by Peter Marais, the former premier of the Western Cape formed an official alliance. This ultimately led to Marais being elected as the party's candidate for premier of the Western Cape for the 2019 elections.

2019 national and provincial elections

FF Plus voter support increased substantially in the 2019 general election, with the party growing its vote total by 250,000, to 2.38% of the national vote, earning ten seats in the National Assembly. This was more than the nine seats that the old Freedom Front had received in 1994. Additionally, it gained eight seats in the provincial legislatures, for a total of eleven. In the 2014 general election, the FF Plus won seats in three provincial legislatures, in 2019, it won seats in eight out of the nine provincial legislatures. Its new supporters were largely Afrikaners and

Coloured Coloureds () are multiracial people in South Africa, Namibia and, to a smaller extent, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Their ancestry descends from the interracial mixing that occurred between Europeans, Africans and Asians. Interracial mixing in South ...

voters from the

Western Cape The Western Cape ( ; , ) is a provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the List of South African provinces by area, fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , an ...

who had previously supported the DA. Following the 2019 general election, the FF Plus won three wards from the Democratic Alliance (DA) in municipal by-elections in the North West Province and continued to show growth in various other municipal by-elections in

Gauteng Gauteng ( , ; Sotho-Tswana languages, Sotho-Tswana for 'place of gold'; or ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Situated on the Highveld, Gauteng is the smallest province by land area in South Africa. Although Gauteng accounts f ...

Limpopo Limpopo () is the northernmost Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a ...

and

Mpumalanga Mpumalanga () is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The name means "East", or literally "The Place Where the Sun Rises" in the Nguni languages. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, bordering Eswatini and Mozambique. It shares bor ...

2021 municipal elections and aftermath

In the run up to the 2021 local government elections, the FF Plus adopted Cape Independence as an official party position. They and CapeXit had a joint election campaign in the Western Cape to highlight the party's stance on Cape Independence. Over 60% of the FF Plus's ward councillors standing in the Western Cape were Coloureds, with Lennit Max being the party's candidate for mayor of Cape Town. The party claims that their candidates are selected purely on merit in contrast to the DA. The FF Plus continued their gains in the Western Cape as a result, being in the

kingmaker A kingmaker is a person or group that has great influence on a monarchy or royal in their political succession, without themselves being a viable candidate. Kingmakers may use political, monetary, religious, and military means to influence the ...

position in over 6 districts. In 2022, FF Plus member Manicks Mpunwana became a city councilor in

Bela-Bela Bela-Bela (Tswana language, Tswana/Pedi for "the pot that boils") - formerly known as Warmbaths, Afrikaans: Warmbad- is a town in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. Deriving its name from the geothermic hot springs around which the town was b ...

, becoming the first black South African to serve as a councilor from the FF Plus.

2024 election and Government of National Unity

In the 2024 general election, the FF Plus gave up many of the gains it had previously made against the DA, winning only six seats in Parliament (National Assembly) with 1.36% of the vote. In June 2024, Freedom Front Plus agreed to join the ANC-led government of national unity (GNU) also known as the

Third Cabinet of Cyril Ramaphosa The third cabinet of Cyril Ramaphosa, also known as the Government of National Unity (GNU), is the incumbent cabinet of the Government of South Africa. It was appointed on 30 June 2024 after the May 2024 general election resulted in a hung pa ...

. The leader of the FF Plus, Pieter Groenewald, became Minister of Correctional Services in the new Cabinet. Following Groenewald's appointment, leadership changes occurred in the party's parliamentary caucus which saw Corné Mulder succeed Groenewald as parliamentary leader and

Wouter Wessels Wouter Wynand Wessels (born 18 March 1985) is a South African politician and a Member of the National Assembly of South Africa for the Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus). He is also the chairperson of Parliament's Standing Committee on the Auditor Gene ...

succeed Mulder as chief whip. On 22 February 2025, Mulder was elected unopposed to succeed Groenewald as party leader after the latter chose not to seek re-election. However, Groenewald remained in his ministerial position.

Policies and ideology

FF Plus is a

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

political party with its beliefs and ideals largely centred around

Afrikaner Afrikaners () are a Southern African ethnic group descended from predominantly Dutch settlers who first arrived at the Cape of Good Hope in 1652.Entry: Cape Colony. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Volume 4 Part 2: Brain to Casting''. Encyclopæd ...

interests' and

Afrikaner nationalism Afrikaner nationalism () is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnic nationalistic political ideology created by Afrikaners residing in Southern Africa during the Victorian era. The ideology was developed in response to the significant events in Afrikaner ...

with an orientation around

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

values. With its origins in Afrikaner Volksfront (Afrikaner People's Front) and the Conservative Party, FF Plus's position has shifted to being more moderate and populist since its beginning, particularly under the leadership of Pieter Groenewald, who has campaigned to alleviate issues within both Afrikaner and Coloured communities, particularly within the Cape provinces (

Northern Cape The Northern Cape ( ; ; ) is the largest and most sparsely populated Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It was created in 1994 when the Cape Province was split up. Its capital is Kimberley, South Africa, Kimberley. It includes ...

Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape ( ; ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, and its largest city is Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth). Due to its climate and nineteenth-century towns, it is a common location for tourists. It is also kno ...

). Within the South African political landscape, the FF Plus is considered further to the right than many other parties, however holds significant vote share with the Democratic Alliance (DA), many voters of which moved toward the FF Plus at the 2019 election. Both parties' voters also hold some crossover on policy matters, such as Cape independence and

federalism Federalism is a mode of government that combines a general level of government (a central or federal government) with a regional level of sub-unit governments (e.g., provinces, State (sub-national), states, Canton (administrative division), ca ...

. As of 2021, its stated policy positions include abolishing

affirmative action Affirmative action (also sometimes called reservations, alternative access, positive discrimination or positive action in various countries' laws and policies) refers to a set of policies and practices within a government or organization seeking ...

and replacing it with merit-based appointments, and opposing the proposed expropriation without compensation land reform movement to protect the rights and interests of minorities, especially

Afrikaners Afrikaners () are a Southern African ethnic group descended from predominantly Dutch people, Dutch Settler colonialism, settlers who first arrived at the Cape of Good Hope in Free Burghers in the Dutch Cape Colony, 1652.Entry: Cape Colony. '' ...

and

Afrikaans Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...

-speaking Coloureds. The party also supports greater self-determination for minorities throughout South Africa, and has adopted Cape independence as an official party position. In this regard, the party has put forward legislation in the

Western Cape Provincial Parliament The Western Cape Provincial Parliament (WCPP) is the legislature of the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is located at 7 Wale Street in Cape Town. The Provincial Parliament, along with the other provincial legislatures of South Africa, ...

(known as the Western Cape People's Bill) calling for a recognition of Western Cape self-determination.

Foreign policy

The party is critical of what it regards as South Africa's contradictory foreign policy under the governing

(ANC). The FF Plus supports the strengthening of relations with countries that "promote self-determination within their own borders", as well as countries with whom South Africa has strong existing trade ties. The party has called on South Africa to criticize the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

and condemn Russia's actions. During the

Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...

, the party expressed support for

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Leaders

Party leader

Election results

South Africa national election 2019 winner by VD

These tables show the electoral performance for the FF Plus since the advent of democracy in 1994: RSA 1994 VF

National Assembly elections

, - ! Election ! Total votes ! Share of vote ! Seats ! +/- ! Government , - !

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

, 424,555 , 2.17% , , – , , - !

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, 127,217 , 0.80% , , 6 , , - !

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, 139,465 , 0.89% , , 1 , , - !

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

, 146,796 , 0.83% , , ±0 , , - !

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

, 165,715 , 0.90% , , ±0 , , - !

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

, 414,864 , 2.38% , , 6 , , - !

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, 218,850 , 1.36% , , 4 ,

Provincial elections

! rowspan=2 , Election ! colspan=2 ,

! colspan=2 , Free State ! colspan=2 ,

! colspan=2 ,

Kwazulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN) is a Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the government merged the Zulu people, Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu language, Zulu) and ...

! colspan=2 ,

! colspan=2 , North-West ! colspan=2 ,

! colspan=2 ,

, - ! % !! Seats ! % !! Seats ! % !! Seats ! % !! Seats ! % !! Seats ! % !! Seats ! % !! Seats ! % !! Seats ! % !! Seats , - !

, 0.8% , , 0/56 , 6.0% , , 2/30 , 6.2% , , 5/86 , 0.5% , , 0/81 , 2.2% , , 1/40 , 5.7% , , 2/30 , 4.6% , , 1/30 , 6.0% , , 2/30 , 2.1% , , 1/42 , - !

, 0.3% , , 0/63 , 2.1% , , 1/30 , 1.3% , , 1/73 , 0.2% , , 0/80 , 0.7% , , 0/49 , 1.7% , , 1/30 , 1.4% , , 1/33 , 1.7% , , 1/30 , 0.4% , , 0/42 , - !

, 0.3% , , 0/63 , 2.5% , , 1/30 , 1.3% , , 1/73 , 0.3% , , 0/80 , 0.6% , , 0/49 , 1.2% , , 1/30 , 1.3% , , 1/33 , 1.6% , , 1/30 , 0.6% , , 0/42 , - !

, 0.2% , , 0/63 , 2.0% , , 1/30 , 1.6% , , 1/73 , 0.8% , , 0/80 , 0.6% , , 0/49 , 0.9% , , 0/30 , 1.8% , , 0/33 , 1.2% , , 0/30 , 0.4% , , 0/42 , - !

, 0.3% , , 0/63 , 2.1% , , 1/30 , 1.2% , , 1/73 , 0.2% , , 0/80 , 0.7% , , 0/49 , 0.8% , , 0/30 , 1.7% , , 1/33 , 1.1% , , 0/30 , 0.6% , , 0/42 , - !

, 0.6% , , 1/63 , 4.0% , , 1/30 , 3.6% , , 3/73 , 0.3% , , 0/80 , 1.4% , , 1/49 , 2.4% , , 1/30 , 4.3% , , 2/33 , 2.7% , , 1/30 , 1.6% , , 1/42 , - !

, 0.5% , , 1/73 , 3.0% , , 1/30 , 2.3% , , 2/80 , 0.2% , , 0/80 , 1.1% , , 1/64 , 1.5% , , 1/51 , 2.6% , , 1/38 , 1.8% , , 1/30 , 1.5% , , 1/42

Municipal elections

, - ! Election ! Ward + PR votes ! Share of vote , - ! 1995–96 , 230 845 , 2.7% , - !

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, , 0.1% , - !

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, 185 960 , 0.9% , - !

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, 120,519 , 0.5% , - !

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, 229,281 , 0.8% , - !

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

, 549,349 , 2.3% , -

References

Notes

External links

* *
SA TalentUnrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation
{{Authority control Articles containing Afrikaans-language text 1994 establishments in South Africa Afrikaner organizations Anti-communist organisations in South Africa Anti-communist parties Boer nationalism Christian democratic parties in Africa Christian nationalism Members of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization Political parties established in 1994 Political parties of minorities in South Africa Separatism in South Africa Protestant political parties Conservative parties in South Africa Social conservative parties National conservative parties Right-wing populist parties White nationalist parties in South Africa White separatism

History

Origins as the Freedom Front (19942003)

Formation of the FF+ and early years (20032016)

Groenewald leadership and resurgence (2016present)

2019 national and provincial elections

2021 municipal elections and aftermath

2024 election and Government of National Unity

Policies and ideology

Foreign policy

Leaders

Party leader

Election results

National Assembly elections

Provincial elections

Municipal elections

See also

References

Notes

External links