Members of the House of Representatives serve two-year terms and are considered for reelection every even year. Senators<span> however, serve six-year terms and elections to the </span>Senate<span> are staggered over even years so that only about 1/3 of the </span>Senate<span> is up for reelection during any election.</span>
<span>Apartheid, the Afrikaans’ word for segregation, brought white supremacy to a whole new level as the rest of the continent was decolonizing following World War II. The National Party government treated non-whites as second class citizens and in the case of Africans, non-citizens. By confining Africans to the ‘homelands’ of Bantus tans, the National Party was able to justify stripping away any basic rights Africans had in the country of South Africa. The international community refused to recognize these homelands, and pressure eventually began to build from all sides to allow equal rights for all residents of South Africa. Pressure came in the form of economic sanctions, expulsions from international organizations, and the divestment of foreign companies.</span><span />
