African Renaissance Unity Party

{{Infobox political party

|name = African Renaissance Unity Party

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|founder = Bryce Mthimkhulu

|leader1_title = Bryce Mthimkhulu

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|founded = 2018

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|seats1_title = National Assembly seats

|seats1 = {{Composition bar|0|400}}

|seats2_title = Provincial Legislatures

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|website = {{URL|https://www.facebook.com/AfricanRenaissanceUnity/}}

|country = South Africa

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The African Renaissance Unity Party (ARU) is a South African political party founded to lobby for the interests of traditional chiefs and their communities. The party's leaders are all traditional chiefs.

At its launch, the party promised to reduce unemployment by 70%, double pensions and provide free tertiary education.{{Cite news |url=https://www.iol.co.za/pretoria-news/new-kid-on-the-block-vows-to-unseat-anc-13670360 |title=New kid on the block vows to unseat ANC | website=www.iol.co.za |language=en |access-date=2019-04-16}}

Controversy

Party leader Bryce Mthimkhulu, who describes himself as King Mthimkhulu III and king of the amaHlubi nation in KwaZulu-Natal, was warned by then president Jacob Zuma in 2016 to stop using the term, and was taken to court by the government (which lost the case).{{Cite web |url=https://www.dailysun.co.za/News/National/new-political-party-registered-20180308 |title=NEW POLITICAL PARTY REGISTERED |last=Khambule |first=Lethabo |date=2018-03-09 |website=DailySun |language=en |access-date=2019-04-16}}{{Cite web |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2019-03-26-crib-sheet-for-the-political-parties-contesting-the-2019-polls-part-two/ |title=2019 Elections: Crib-sheet for the political parties contesting the 2019 polls, Part Two |last=Davis |first=Rebecca |website=Daily Maverick |date=25 March 2019 |language=en |access-date=2019-04-16}}

Election results

The party contested the 2019 general election at the national level, and provincial level in the Free State, Kwazulu-Natal and Limpopo, failing to win any seats.

=National elections=

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! Election

! Total votes

! Share of vote

! Seats

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! Government

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! 2019

| 3,860

| 0.02%

| {{Composition bar|0|400|hex={{party color|African Renaissance Unity Party}}}}

| –

| {{no|extraparliamentary}}

|}

=Provincial elections=

! rowspan=2 | Election{{Cite web |url=https://www.elections.org.za/NPEDashboard/app/dashboard.html |title=Results Dashboard| website=www.elections.org.za |access-date=2019-05-11}}

! colspan=2 | Eastern Cape

! colspan=2 | Free State

! colspan=2 | Gauteng

! colspan=2 | Kwazulu-Natal

! colspan=2 | Limpopo

! colspan=2 | Mpumalanga

! colspan=2 | North-West

! colspan=2 | Northern Cape

! colspan=2 | Western Cape

|-

! % !! Seats

|-