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EXCERPT:
On April 27, 1994, South Africa delivered a landslide victory to activist and former political prisoner Nelson Mandela and his once-outlawed African National Congress, marking the end of the apartheid era.
The election was held over four days, and over 20 million South Africans turned out, including millions who had long been denied their right to participate in an election. They stood in line for hours, all for a chance to vote in the country’s first truly democratic elections.
“This is one of the most important moments in the life of our country,” Mandela said in his victory speech. “I stand here before you filled with deep pride and joy. Pride in the ordinary, humble people of this country. You have shown such a calm, patient determination to reclaim this country as your own.”