Pretoria - The African National Congress (ANC) has a fight on its hands in the key provinces of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal where by late Thursday night it held a slim majority in each.
In Gauteng, South Africa's economic heartland as well as its most populous province, the party had obtained just over one million votes, for 51% of the votes tallied.
The ANC was followed by its two main political rivals, the Democratic Alliance (DA) with 538 000 votes, or just under 27%, and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) with 284 000 votes, or 14% of the vote.
In the 2014 elections the ANC had garnered 53.5% of the vote and faces another tough battle to keep its nose in front.
In KwaZulu-Natal, a traditional ANC stronghold, the ANC was polling at just under 54% of the votes tallied, with 756 000 votes. In the 2014 general elections, the ANC had won the province with 64.5% of the vote.
By Thursday night, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) was putting in a strong showing and on track to overtake the DA and become the official opposition in the province, carrying 266 000 votes or almost 19%, while the DA had around 180 000 votes for 12%.
With the exception of the Western Cape, where the ANC is in opposition to the DA, the party was polling in the mid to upper 60 percent bracket in the remaining six provinces where it is expected to cruise to comfortable victories.