1896 Orange Free State presidential election
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Presidential elections were held in the Orange Free State in February 1896.[1] They were held after the former President Francis William Reitz resigned due to bad health in 1895.[2] The two candidates were High Court judge Martinus Theunis Steyn and John G. Fraser.[2] Whilst Steyn supported the proposed merger of the Orange Free State and Transvaal, Fraser was in favour of closer links with the neighbouring Cape Colony and the United Kingdom.[2]
 | ||||||||||||||
February 1896
| ||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||
The election resulted in a convincing win for Steyn,[1] who received 83% of the vote. He was inaugurated as president on 4 March 1896 at the Dutch Reformed Church in Bloemfontein.[2]
Results
| Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| Martinus Theunis Steyn | 6,877 | 83.42 |
| John G. Fraser | 1,367 | 16.58 |
| Total | 8,244 | 100.00 |
| Source: South African History Online[2] | ||