South Africans Head to the Polls in High-Stakes Local Elections
Voters will choose councilors who pick mayors, a test of the ANC’s waning grip on major cities.
South Africans are gearing up for a pivotal local government vote that will shape the leadership of the nation’s largest cities.
On Wednesday, voters will elect councilors who will in turn select mayors responsible for municipal services such as water, sanitation and rubbish collection.
Beyond local issues, candidates are fielding questions about national concerns like illegal immigration, high unemployment and crime.
“I think for most voters, they assess the situation of where they are, that’s their immediate reaction. But for a party, the image that you have at national level might make your candidate at local level be overlooked,” said Sandile Mnguni, a political analyst at the University of KwaZulu‑Natal.
The African National Congress, which lost its parliamentary majority in 2024, now governs in a unity arrangement with the Democratic Alliance and smaller parties.
In the 2021 municipal elections, the ANC surrendered control of several major cities and now governs many through coalitions.
Johannesburg, home to nearly five million residents and most of South Africa’s corporate headquarters, is a coveted prize for all parties.
The city is currently overseen by a fragile ANC‑led coalition and has seen nine mayors in ten years, a turnover blamed for deteriorating infrastructure and financial mismanagement.
Residents routinely encounter burst water pipes, cracked roads, hijacked buildings, broken traffic lights, unreliable electricity and piles of rubbish.
Several parties have put forward high‑profile mayoral candidates and launched extensive campaigns.
The Democratic Alliance has nominated 75‑year‑old veteran Helen Zille. Her campaign has featured snorkeling in a water‑filled trench, spinning a modified BMW and DJing at a local club to rally support.
“Well, the big thing is, the ANC is certainly collapsing, it is in free fall, and suddenly we don’t have a competitor anymore,” Zille told The Associated Press at a campaign event near Alexandra township, northeast of Johannesburg.
The Economic Freedom Fighters are fielding Dr. Tlaleng Mofokeng, who recently completed a six‑year term as the United Nations special rapporteur on the right to health.
ActionSA’s candidate Herman Mashaba is seeking another term as mayor of Johannesburg after resigning in 2019 when he left the DA.
These contests will not only determine who runs the city’s services but also serve as a barometer of the ANC’s continuing electoral decline.
As South Africans head to the polls, the outcomes will signal whether the ruling party can halt its slide or if opposition forces will reshape the nation’s urban governance.
