1970 South African General Election
22 April 1970 · The apartheid parliament · 166 seats, 84 for a majority
The elections marked the first time since the formation of South African in 1910 that the House of Assembly would be responsible solely to White South Africans, as the seats for the four MPs elected separately by "qualified" Cape Coloured voters expired in the same year, completing the process of political apartheid.
A whites-only election under apartheid: the great majority of South Africans were denied the vote entirely. Recorded here as history, with that exclusion stated plainly.
Government leader before
B. J. Vorster
National
Government leader (continued)
B. J. Vorster
National
Largest force
National Party
117 of 166 seats
Turnout
69.8%
The result
| Share of the Assembly | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Party | B. J. Vorster | 117 | +9 | 822 034 | 54.9% | -3.4 | |
| United Party | De Villiers Graaff | 47 | +8 | 553 280 | 36.9% | +0.3 | |
| Progressive Party | Jan Steytler | 1 | 0 | 51 742 | 3.5% | +0.4 |
1 further seat went to parties and independents outside the main contenders listed above.