ameral parliament consisting of the
National Assembly (400 seats; members are elected by popular vote
under a system of proportional representation to serve five-year
terms) and the National Council of Provinces (90 seats, 10 members
elected by each of the nine provincial legislatures for five-year
terms; has special powers to protect regional interests, including
the safeguarding of cultural and linguistic traditions among ethnic
minorities); note--following the implementation of the new
constitution on 3 February 1997 the former Senate was disbanded and
replaced by the National Council of Provinces with essentially no
change in membership and party affiliations, although the new
institution's responsibilities have been changed somewhat by the new
constitution
elections: National Assembly and Senate--last held 26-29 April 1994
(next to be held 2 June 1999); note--the Senate was disbanded and
replaced by the National Council of Provinces on 6 February 1997
election results: National Assembly--percent of vote by party--ANC
62.6%, NP 20.4%, IFP 10.5%, FF 2.2%, DP 1.7%, PAC 1.2%, ACDP 0.5%,
other 0.9%; seats by party--ANC 252, NP 82, IFP 43, FF 9, DP 7, PAC
5, ACDP 2; Senate--percent of vote by party--NA; seats by party--ANC
61, NP 17, FF 4, IFP 5, DP 3

Judicial branch: Constitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals;
High Courts; Magistrate Courts

Political parties and leaders: African Christian Democratic Party
SCHALKWYK, executive director]; Pan-Africanist Congress or PAC
note: 11 other parties won votes in the April 1994 elections but not
enough to gain seats in the National Assembly

Political pressure groups and leaders: Congress of South African
secretary]; South African National Civics Organization or SANCO
in a formal alliance with the ANC

International organization participation: AfDB, BIS, C, CCC, ECA,
FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
ISO, ITU, MTCR, NAM, NSG, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNHCR, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant)
chancery: 3051 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
consulate(s) general: Beverly Hills (California), Chicago, and New
York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador James A. JOSE