ANC nears S Africa election win

South Africa's ruling African National Congress has claimed a "strong mandate" in general elections set to hand the party's leader, Jacob Zuma, the presidency.Partial results have given the ANC a 65 per cent lead, but the party is not yet guaranteed a two-thirds majority in parliament that would let it make changes to the constitution.The party announced it would block off downtown Johannesburg streets around its offices on Thursday for Zuma to address his supporters in the evening to celebrate victory."The ANC invites fellow South Africans to attend this celebration to share the joy of having achieved a strong mandate to consolidate the gains made during the past 15 years," it said in a statement."The ANC thanks millions of South Africans for casting their vote, giving the ANC a renewed mandate to deliver on key priorities outlined in the election manifesto."Gwede Mantashe, the ANC secretary-general, said: "We have been talking about a decisive victory, which we think is in sight."