On Wednesday, May 7, millions of South Africans voted in nationwide elections that are expected to see the ruling African National Congress return to power despite a vigorous challenge from opposition parties. For the first time, the electorate included a so-called "born free" generation, with birthdays after apartheid rule in South Africa ended in April 1994.
ຊາວອາຟຣິກາໃຕ້ ປ່ອນບັດ ໃນທົ່ວປະເທດ
![Voters dance and sing in the early hours while holding up their identification documents as they queue to vote at a polling station. The station was burned down overnight in the politically sensitive mining town of Bekkersdal, South Africa, May 7, 2014.](https://gdb.voanews.com/1c1eea41-51d6-4c11-9c69-9a064270019b_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Voters dance and sing in the early hours while holding up their identification documents as they queue to vote at a polling station. The station was burned down overnight in the politically sensitive mining town of Bekkersdal, South Africa, May 7, 2014.
![South Africans queue to vote as mounted police provide security near a polling station that was burned down overnight. A tent was erected to replace the station in the politically sensitive mining town of Bekkersdal, South Africa, May 7, 2014.](https://gdb.voanews.com/a78e2f79-c01e-4052-8ec0-c4116af7b920_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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South Africans queue to vote as mounted police provide security near a polling station that was burned down overnight. A tent was erected to replace the station in the politically sensitive mining town of Bekkersdal, South Africa, May 7, 2014.
![A mother casts her vote at a polling station in the Alexandra township of Johannesburg, South Africa, May 7, 2014.](https://gdb.voanews.com/1ef20d02-790a-4159-98bc-76f5a8ea13c8_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A mother casts her vote at a polling station in the Alexandra township of Johannesburg, South Africa, May 7, 2014.
![Women sit and wait in queue to cast their votes at an informal settlement in Soweto, South Africa, May 7, 2014.](https://gdb.voanews.com/14bb3b82-dadd-45f0-b45a-9a306fd7fd0a_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Women sit and wait in queue to cast their votes at an informal settlement in Soweto, South Africa, May 7, 2014.