South Africa’s 2025 CPE Survey shows widespread frustration with governance, service delivery and economic conditions a year into the GNU, with most citizens rating both local and national performance as low and identifying corruption as the biggest barrier to progress. Yet the findings also reveal a shared, hopeful vision: people want jobs, integrity in leadership and reliable essential services. The country may be losing trust in its institutions, but not in its democratic future—or in the possibility of a renewed social contract built on accountability and opportunity.