South African president says general elections to be held May 7

ABOVE: Protests erupt in South Africa following announcement of national elections

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa – South Africa’s president says general elections will be held on May 7.

President Jacob Zuma is also urging South Africans to register to vote in their thousands this weekend, the last opportunity to do so ahead of the election.

Zuma noted in a statement Friday that the election is occurring 20 years after the end of white minority rule, and that it provides an opportunity for South Africans to build on the democracy that anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela and others fought so hard to achieve.

The ruling African National Congress is the electoral front-runner. But the popularity of the party and Zuma has diminish