Millions of people voted on Wednesday in a landmark general election in South Africa, where the ruling African National Congress party (ANC) is hoping to reverse a slide in support 25 years after the country’s first free elections ushered in a new democratic era.

In Alexandra, a poor neighbourhood in Johannesburg, long queues formed at polling stations shortly after they opened at 7am. “If you don’t vote, you can’t complain afterwards. This election will change so many things,” said Neziswa Tshwangana, 34.

Many South Africans have been alienated by repeated corruption scandals and the ANC’s continuing failure to deal with a flagging economy, collapsing public services, soaring unemployment and high levels of violent crime. There is also rising anger at the party’s failure to hold its officials to account after graft investigations.

Struggling South Africans lose faith in Nelson Mandela’s legacy Read more

“We need to send a message to the government. They have to learn their lesson. We need as many opposition parties in parliament as possible to have real competition,” said Donald Kuljane, 53, as he queued.

Polls have predicted the ANC will win between 55% and 62% of the vote. The centre right Democratic Alliance party (DA) was predicted to win up to 20% while the far left Economic Freedom Fighters party (EFF) was considered unlikely to poll more than 15%.

Agents for the EFF in Alexandra said it was on course for a “big win”. “This is our big breakthrough. The ANC ate money and now they blame everyone else. This is a big day,” said Molly Mabuna, 45.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest An African National Congress supporter in Soweto on Wednesday. Photograph: Wikus de Wet/AFP/Getty Images

Kagiso Senyono, an electoral agent for the DA, said the party expected “a good show”. “We did very well at the municipal elections and since we have showed the people we are capable of governing the country,” the 21-year-old said.

The polls appear to have gone smoothly, though rain caused some disruption.

Supporters of Cyril Ramaphosa, who has been president since February last year, said the former labour activist turned tycoon needs a convincing victory if he is to implement an ambitious reform agenda that has stalled since he took power. They have called on voters to give the ANC a thumping majority and rescue it from a “moral crisis”.

“Corruption got into the way, patronage got into the way and not focusing on the needs of our people got in the way … Now we are owning up to that. We are saying we are going to correct the bad ways of the past,” Ramaphosa said as he cast his vote at a primary school in Soweto, south of Johannesburg.

ANC corruption is a major cause of South Africa’s failure – and the polls will show it | William Gumede Read more

The ANC won 62% of the vote in 2014’s parliamentary election, down from 2009 and far short of its best result, 69% in 2004 under Thabo Mbeki. The party lost further ground in municipal elections in 2016, ceding control of key cities to the DA.

The party can still tap deep reservoirs of support and has formidable powers of organisation. In Alexandra, dozens of people surrounded ANC officials to check their names were on party membership lists before voting.

“We want everything to be better, at least for our children and grandchildren. But the ANC has done a lot for us, even if it is not perfect. If we don’t give Cyril a chance then how can he change anything?” said Kansile Mahlangu, 35.

A big issue has been the implementation of a 2017 ANC pledge to redistribute prime agricultural land, currently disproportionately owned by white people, who constitute less than 10% of the population. A leftwing faction within the party has, along with the EFF, pushed for more radical measures to redistribute resources.

“This is our land. It is our African land. It was taken from us by force. For 300 years these people were running the land. The economy is in the hands of white people, too,” said Kanyiso Mbatha, a 40-year-old unemployed driver.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest An woman walks home after casting her vote in Mpumalanga. Photograph: Themba Hadebe/AP

Ramaphosa has vowed to accelerate the redistribution of land to the black majority, endorsing an opposition bill to amend the constitution to make expropriation without compensation easier.

At a campaign event last week in Johannesburg the president, 66, said there would be a “step-change” in the pace of reform and the economy was ready for lift off.

But the ANC’s list of parliamentary candidates contains many hardliners who are opposed to Ramaphosa’s reformist agenda and could frustrate his initiatives in parliament.

South Africa election: everything you need to know Read more

“There’s a herd mentality that if Ramaphosa gets a strong majority for the ANC, it will somehow strengthen him. That’s not the case,” said Ralph Mathekga, a political analyst.

The DA appointed its first black leader, Mmusi Maimane, in 2015 and made headlines with big victories in local elections in Pretoria and Johannesburg a year later. But splits within the party and with allies could hit support.

“Fear says to us: let’s stick with what we know; hope says: lets bring change,” Maimane said after casting his ballot in the township of Soweto.

ANC officials argue they are still struggling to overcome decades of deliberate impoverishment of most of the population by white supremacist apartheid rulers, and point to achievements such as the construction of 2.8m houses over recent decades.

One recent survey suggested South Africa’s performance on a range of social, economic and governance measures had deteriorated more in the past 12 years than that of any other nation not at war.