National Party
The National Party was a South African political party that governed the country from 1948 to 1994 and implemented the system of apartheid. Founded in 1914 as a vehicle for Afrikaner nationalism, the party came to power in 1948 under DF Malan and introduced a comprehensive legislative framework of racial segregation and white minority rule. Under successive leaders including Hendrik Verwoerd, John Vorster and PW Botha, the National Party entrenched apartheid through laws such as the Population Registration Act, Group Areas Act and pass laws that controlled every aspect of black South Africans' lives. The party's policies drew international condemnation, sanctions and isolation for South Africa throughout the latter half of the twentieth century. In 1989, FW de Klerk became party leader and State President, initiating negotiations that would dismantle apartheid. De Klerk unbanned the African National Congress and other liberation movements in 1990, released Nelson Mandela from prison and entered into negotiations that led to South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994. The National Party participated in the Government of National Unity from 1994 to 1996 before going into opposition. The party was dissolved in 2005, with some members joining the ANC and others forming or joining smaller parties. Its legacy remains central to South Africa's political discourse, particularly in debates around reconciliation, restitution and transformation.
National Party Updates
The End of Normal: A Witness to the Unravelling of White Power in South Africa
6th May 2026 In 1976 Max du Preez witnessed the first stones thrown and the first shots fired in Soweto on June 16 as a young newspaper reporter. Having grown... →
Ramaphosa defends appointment of ‘patriotic’ Meyer to ‘recalibrate’ US relations 
By: Thabi Shomolekae 15th April 2026 Despite backlash at his appointment of Roelf Meyer as South Africa’s ambassador to the US, President Cyril Ramaphosa has doubled down on his... →
EFF wants newly appointed Roelf Meyer removed as US ambassador
By: Thabi Shomolekae 15th April 2026 The Economic Freedom Fighters on Wednesday called for the rescinding of Roelf Meyer’s appointment as South Africa’s ambassador to the US, claiming... →
Ramaphosa appoints Roelf Meyer as next ambassador to US
By: Reuters 14th April 2026 President Cyril Ramaphosa has chosen Roelf Meyer, a former chief government negotiator during talks to end white minority rule in the 1990s, to be... →
Khampepe commission should hear from "prime eveil"
23rd March 2026 Notorious apartheid-era security police mass murderer Eugene de Kock has information that neither old nor new order political leaders want South... →
Under Smuts’s Rule: Jan Smuts and His Impact on Black South Africans – Bongani Ngqulunga
13th March 2026 Jan Smuts is revered by some as a national and international statesman, but he is condemned by others as an architect of segregation. In his new... →
Khampepe Commission must subpoena former Presidents for cross-examination
6th March 2026 The evidence of former senior prosecutors to the Khampepe Commission paints a damning picture of political manipulation to stop perpetrators of... →
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