Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF)

Founded: 2013.

The Economic Freedom Fighters is a South African party whose 2024 election manifesto is organised around seven pillars, including expropriation of land without compensation and nationalisation of mines, banks and other strategic sectors. It campaigns for a developmental state with state-owned companies, free education and health care, and a restructured constitutional system that abolishes the provincial sphere.

Official website: https://effonline.org/

Not yet reviewed by a human. These positions were placed by reading the sources below; each one links to the document it came from.

15 of 15 axes have a cited position. Axes without a published position are marked as such and are never scored.

Positions

Economy: state or market — -2.00

State-led: the state owns or directs key industries, sets prices and plans investment.Market-led: private ownership, deregulation, lower taxes and a smaller state.

State-led: the state owns or directs key industries, sets prices and plans investment.

Nationalisation of mines, banks and other strategic sectors of the economy, without compensation.

2024 Election Manifesto , The seven pillars (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Land reform and expropriation — -2.00

Expropriation without compensation and state custodianship of land.Strong property rights; redistribution only through willing-buyer/willing-seller and the courts.

Expropriation without compensation and state custodianship of land.

The EFF government's approach to the resolution of the land question will continue to be anchored on the principle of expropriation of land without compensation for equal redistribution and use, and for the State to be the custodian of all land in South Africa.

2024 Election Manifesto , Land (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

BEE and race-based redress — -1.50

Race-based redress expanded: BEE, employment equity and ownership targets enforced.Race-based redress phased out or replaced by non-racial, class-based or need-based measures.

Race-based redress expanded: BEE, employment equity and ownership targets enforced.

The EFF government will reject the weakening amendments to the BBBEE Act, reinforcing our commitment to economic empowerment and transformation.

2024 Election Manifesto , Public Procurement (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Labour market — -1.00

Strong worker protection: higher minimum wages, collective bargaining, limits on labour broking and dismissal.Flexible labour market: easier hiring and dismissal, fewer statutory protections, incentives for employers.

Leaning towards: strong worker protection: higher minimum wages, collective bargaining, limits on labour broking and dismissal.

The EFF government will pass legislation that ensures a minimum wage of R6,000 across the board for all fulltime workers and will fight to ensure that each of the following sectors accordingly receives the stipulated minimum wage...

2024 Election Manifesto , Jobs (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Healthcare and NHI — -1.50

Universal public health care: a publicly funded and publicly provided National Health Insurance with a smaller private sector.Private provision: medical schemes and market competition carry most of the system, with a smaller public role.

Universal public health care: a publicly funded and publicly provided National Health Insurance with a smaller private sector.

The EFF government will adopt a life-cycle approach to the national health care system that focuses on primary health care, building 24hr ideal clinics and disease profiling through public health care facilities.

2024 Election Manifesto , Health (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Education — -1.00

State-directed schooling: a central curriculum, expanded free public education and tighter regulation of independent schools.Parental choice: independent schools, charter-type models and market mechanisms in education.

Leaning towards: state-directed schooling: a central curriculum, expanded free public education and tighter regulation of independent schools.

Free quality education, health care, houses and sanitation.

2024 Election Manifesto , The seven pillars (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Crime and policing — -1.00

Enforcement-first: more police and soldiers on the streets, harsher sentences, fewer procedural limits on the state.Prevention-first: community policing, restorative justice, and civil-liberties safeguards.

Leaning towards: enforcement-first: more police and soldiers on the streets, harsher sentences, fewer procedural limits on the state.

The EFF government will employ and empower more police and decentralize all FCS units to be allocated in each police station for direct consultation, investigation, and effecting arrests of perpetrators to ensure successful prosecution and secure the harshest conviction for each GBVF crime.

2024 Election Manifesto (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Immigration — -0.75

Restrictive: tighter borders, limits on foreign nationals, deportation of undocumented migrants.Open: freer movement, rights for migrants, and regional integration.

Leaning towards: restrictive: tighter borders, limits on foreign nationals, deportation of undocumented migrants.

The EFF government will ensure that all immigrants shall be registered and have their fingerprints captured by the new Department of Home Affairs and Internal Security.

2024 Election Manifesto , State Security (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Energy and climate — +1.25

Rapid decarbonisation: coal phase-out, renewable generation and climate commitments prioritised.Energy security first: continued coal, gas or nuclear generation and a slower transition.

Leaning towards: energy security first: continued coal, gas or nuclear generation and a slower transition.

The EFF government will leverage 200 years of coal reserves, implementing carbon-capturing technology, and nuclear energy as the dependable energy for baseload to ensure security of energy supply.

2024 Election Manifesto , Energy (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Federalism and devolution — -1.50

Centralised: a unitary state where national government sets policy and lower tiers have limited discretion.Devolved or federal: more powers, budgets and discretion for provinces and municipalities.

Centralised: a unitary state where national government sets policy and lower tiers have limited discretion.

The EFF government will change the constitutional structure, including the abolition of the provincial sphere of government, accompanied by a mass restructuring, and strengthening of local government spheres into a unitary state.

2024 Election Manifesto , Constitutional Structure and Democratic Participation (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Traditional leadership — -0.50

Expanded role: traditional leaders hold formal powers over governance, land and customary law.Limited role: elected structures and individual constitutional rights take precedence over customary authority.

Between the two poles

The EFF government will clarify and elaborate on the role of traditional leaders in respect of rural development and dispensing indigenous forms of justice and repeal all apartheid laws.

2024 Election Manifesto , Constitutional Structure and Democratic Participation (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Social values — +0.75

Conservative: law reflects religious or traditional morality, with narrower reproductive and LGBTQ+ rights.Liberal: secular law, with expanded gender, reproductive and LGBTQ+ rights.

Leaning towards: liberal: secular law, with expanded gender, reproductive and lgbtq+ rights.

The EFF government will introduce a law that will decriminalize sex work and regulate sex work as work to prevent the criminalization of women who engage in the sex work business, as well as ensuring their safety in conducting their business in peace without being victimized and falling prey to all unscrupulous perpetrators.

2024 Election Manifesto (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Foreign policy — -1.50

Non-aligned and Global South: closer ties with BRICS, Russia, China and Palestine, with distance from Western powers.Western-aligned: closer ties with the United States, the European Union and other liberal democracies.

Non-aligned and Global South: closer ties with BRICS, Russia, China and Palestine, with distance from Western powers.

The EFF government will ensure that the military collaborates with progressive countries such as China and Russia to transfer knowledge, create joint ventures, and facilitate technological exchange.

2024 Election Manifesto , State Security (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Anti-corruption and governance — -1.50

Expanded oversight: independent anti-corruption bodies with stronger investigative powers, asset forfeiture and procurement transparency.Smaller state machinery: fewer new bodies and regulations, with corruption handled through existing criminal law and the courts.

Expanded oversight: independent anti-corruption bodies with stronger investigative powers, asset forfeiture and procurement transparency.

The EFF government will amend the constitution to move the SIU to be part of PPSA and create a supreme investigation structure.

2024 Election Manifesto , Constitutional Structure and Democratic Participation (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)

Local service delivery — -0.50

Centralised delivery: national standards and national or provincial intervention where councils fail.Municipal self-reliance: councils and communities decide, with private or community providers used where they work better.

Between the two poles

Under the EFF government, a minimum of 50% of funds allocated to local government must be used solely to deliver services.

2024 Election Manifesto , Fiscal and Monetary Framework (manifesto, 2024-02-10; accessed 2026-10-18)