ANC falls below one-third in South African local vote as coalition talks begin

South Africa’s African National Congress is heading for its worst performance in a local election, with the Electoral Commission reporting that it had won just over 30% of the vote after 98% of ballots were counted. The result leaves the party without a majority in six of the country’s eight metropolitan regions and sets the stage for difficult coalition negotiations. The ANC remained the largest party nationally, but its support had fallen sharply from previous municipal and national contests.

The Guardian put the party on 31.8%, almost 14 percentage points below its 2021 local-election result. DW reported the tally at slightly above 30%, reflecting the fact that counting was not yet complete. Final results were expected on Sunday.

The Democratic Alliance was in second place with about 24% nationally and was set to retain an outright majority in Cape Town. The centre-right party was also leading in Pretoria and Johannesburg, where it was expected to seek coalitions that exclude the ANC. DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis said the focus should now be on forming governments capable of improving towns and cities.

The vote reflected widespread dissatisfaction with municipal services. DW cited shortages of water and electricity, high unemployment, crime and corruption as major concerns. The Guardian highlighted uncollected rubbish, potholes and unreliable utilities, particularly in Johannesburg, which has experienced 10 mayoral changes in the past decade and faces a reported 220 billion rand infrastructure spending backlog.

ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula described the result as “catastrophic” for the movement and said it needed to rebuild public confidence. President Cyril Ramaphosa had not publicly addressed the election outcome by Saturday evening, although he had acknowledged earlier that failures by municipalities had weakened trust in democratic governance. The results extend a decline that became nationally significant in 2024, when the ANC lost its parliamentary majority for the first time since the end of apartheid.

It subsequently formed a national unity government with parties represented in Parliament. The latest local vote may offer an indication of voter sentiment before the 2029 general election, although coalition outcomes will determine how many municipalities are ultimately governed. In Johannesburg, the final balance remained uncertain.

With just over half the votes counted, the DA led on 40%, followed by the ANC on 17.5% and ActionSA on 15.5%; a CSIR projection put the DA on 34%, the ANC on 20% and ActionSA on 16.8%. The Guardian also reported that the uMkhonto weSizwe party was expected to overtake the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal. Councillors have two weeks after the results to elect mayors and form municipal administrations.