South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC) was on course for its weakest municipal election result yet, leading the national count but facing talks over who would govern major cities.
In the initial report, more than 81% of votes had been counted. The Electoral Commission’s live dashboard later showed that 92% of the count was complete, with the ANC at 31.31% and the Democratic Alliance (DA) at 24.35%. At the earlier point when 81% had been counted, the parties were at about 32% and 25%, respectively.
The ANC’s current share is far below its 45.6% in the 2021 municipal elections. This continues a decline that led it to lose its majority in the national parliament in 2024. The DA led the count of seats in Johannesburg.
The ANC led in Tshwane and Ekurhuleni. No party had won enough seats for a majority in those cities. In Durban’s eThekwini municipality, Jacob Zuma’s uMkhonto weSizwe Party was leading.
It could become another party involved in talks to form governing alliances. Because results remained unsettled, parties will have to negotiate alliances to govern many councils instead of having a clear result that gives one party the right to govern. The final count could still change as the remaining votes are processed.