1953 South African general election

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1953 South African general election

← 1948 15 April 1953 1958 →
All 156 general roll seats in the House of Assembly 79 seats needed for a majority
Registered	1,385,591
Turnout	87.95% ( 7.71pp)
First party Second party Third party   SALP Leader D. F. Malan Koos Strauss John Christie Party National United Labour Last election 41.63%, 79 seats[a] 49.18%, 65 seats 2.57%, 6 seats Seats won 94 57 5 Seat change 15 8 1 Popular vote 598,718 576,474 34,730 Percentage 49.48% 47.65% 2.87% Swing 7.85pp 1.53pp 0.30pp
Results by province Largest party by province
Prime Minister before election D. F. Malan National Elected Prime Minister D. F. Malan National

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General elections were held in South Africa on 15 April 1953. The elections consolidated the position of the National Party under D. F. Malan, which won an absolute majority of the 156 elected seats in the House of Assembly, also receiving the most votes. Its first-time majority of the white electorate would be retained until the 1989 elections.

The United Party under J. G. N. Strauss, who had become leader after Jan Smuts' death in 1950, lost several seats, and suffered several splits after the election. The Labour Party leader died five days before the election. Cape Coloured voters voted for the last time in a general election until 1994, overwhelmingly for the United Party.
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