This report is dedicated to the memory of our dear colleague, Jan Hofmeyr, who passed away on 24 June 2025. He was one of the most senior and longest-serving staff members of the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR). Jan’s interest in politics and governance began in the seminal years of South Africa’s transition to democracy. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and political philosophy at Stellenbosch University in 1995 and, in the years that followed, an honours in journalism (1997) and a Master of Philosophy in Political Management (1999).