1948 South African general election

1948 South African general election

← 1943 26 May 1948 1953 →

All 150 general roll seats in the House of Assembly
76 seats needed for a majority
Registered1,337,534
Turnout80.25% (Increase 0.76pp)
  First party Second party
 
DFMalanPortret (cropped).jpg
Genl JC Smuts (cropped).jpg
Leader D. F. Malan Jan Smuts
Party Reunited National United
Last election 36.70%, 43 seats 49.68%, 89 seats
Seats won 70 65
Seat change Increase 27 Decrease 24
Popular vote 401,834 524,230
Percentage 37.70% 49.18%
Swing Increase 1.00pp Decrease 0.50pp

  Third party Fourth party
 
Havenga (cropped).jpg
Lab
Leader Nicolaas Havenga John Christie
Party Afrikaner Labour
Last election 1.78%, 0 seats 4.36%, 9 seats
Seats won 9 6
Seat change Increase 9 Decrease 3
Popular vote 41,885 27,360
Percentage 3.93% 2.57%
Swing Increase 2.15pp Decrease 1.79pp


Prime Minister before election

Jan Smuts
United

Elected Prime Minister

D. F. Malan
Reunited National

General elections were held in South Africa on 26 May 1948. They represented a turning point in the country's history, as despite receiving just under half of the votes cast, the United Party and its leader, incumbent Prime Minister Jan Smuts, were ousted by the Herenigde Nasionale Party (HNP) led by D. F. Malan, a Dutch Reformed cleric.

Due to a racially segregated election system and restrictive franchise requirements, the electorate consisted almost exclusively of white people (who were roughly 20% of the population). Very few people of coloured and Asian descent were allowed to vote in this election. Africans had been banned altogether since the late 1930s, with the limited number of Africans meeting electoral qualifications voting for seven "own" white MPs separately.

During the election campaign, both the UP and the HNP formed coalitions with smaller parties. The UP was aligned with the left-leaning Labour Party, while the Afrikaner Party sought to advance Afrikaner rights by allying with the HNP.

The HNP, realising that many White South Africans felt threatened by black political aspirations, pledged to implement a policy of strict racial segregation in all spheres of living. The Nationalists labelled this new system of social organisation "apartheid" ("apartness" or "separation"), the name by which it became universally known. The HNP also took advantage of white fear of black-on-white crime, and the HNP promised whites safety and security from black-on-white crime and violence.

In contrast to the HNP's consistent, straightforward platform, the UP supported vague notions of slowly integrating the different racial groups within South Africa. Furthermore, white dissatisfaction with domestic and economic problems in South Africa after World War II, the HNP's superior organisation, and electoral malapportionment that favoured rural areas (where the HNP were traditionally stronger) all proved to be significant challenges to the UP campaign.

The elections marked the onset of 46 years of National Party rule in South Africa.