ANC Remains South Africa’s Biggest Party As DA Leads In Five Metros After 2026 Elections

South Africa’s political landscape has shifted following the 2026 Local Government Elections, with the African National Congress (ANC) retaining its position as the country’s biggest party nationally, despite further electoral setbacks.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) emerged as the leading party in five of the country’s eight metropolitan municipalities, while the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party strengthened its position in KwaZulu-Natal.

The results have opened the door to complex coalition negotiations, particularly in Gauteng, where smaller parties such as ActionSA could play a decisive role in determining who governs key municipalities.

The ANC secured 30.76% of the national vote, followed by the DA on 24.64%. The MK Party came third with 9.76%, ahead of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) on 6.22% and ActionSA on 5.67%.

Approximately 14.9 million South Africans voted, representing a turnout of 52%, up from 45.9% in the 2021 elections. The ANC’s national support declined from 33.6% in 2021, while the DA improved on its previous 26.1% share.

DA And ActionSA Face Coalition Negotiations In Gauteng

Johannesburg is among the municipalities facing potentially complicated coalition negotiations. The DA secured 91 seats in the 270-seat council, while ActionSA won 43. A combined administration would still fall short of the 136 seats required for a majority.

The negotiations have attracted attention following reports that ActionSA wanted the DA to reconsider Helen Zille as its Johannesburg mayoral candidate, with party leader Herman Mashaba reportedly being proposed for the position.

Mashaba has challenged the Sunday Times report, accusing the publication of misleading readers. ActionSA leader Michael Beaumont has indicated that the party is not ruling out an arrangement involving Zille, although it has reservations about her suitability.

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Zille has said she would prefer a two-party coalition with either ActionSA or the ANC, arguing that fewer partners would make an administration easier to manage.

ActionSA has also completed its first round of coalition discussions with the ANC, describing the talks as productive and respectful.

In Tshwane, the DA led with 34.4%, followed by ActionSA on 22.1%. The DA also emerged as the leading party in Ekurhuleni with 30.7%.

Elsewhere, the DA secured 44.2% in Nelson Mandela Bay, while the ANC led in Buffalo City with 41.9%. In Mangaung, the ANC received 33.9%, narrowly ahead of the DA on 33.5%.

MK Party Emerges As Biggest Party In eThekwini

The biggest political shift in KwaZulu-Natal was recorded in eThekwini, where the MK Party emerged as the largest party with 86 of the metro’s 223 council seats.

However, it fell short of the 112 seats needed for an outright majority. The DA secured 57 seats, followed by the ANC with 37, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) with 15, ActionSA with seven and the EFF with four.

The results mark a significant change in the metro’s political landscape, where the ANC previously held the largest share of council representation.

However, the KwaZulu-Natal results remain subject to possible changes as the IEC considers late objections submitted under Section 65 of the Municipal Electoral Act.

Provincial electoral officer Ntombifuthi Masinga said the commission would first decide whether to reject the objections or condone their late submission.

“It is important to announce that the results that we are announcing today are preliminary results subject to the consideration of some of the Section 65s that were submitted late,” she said.

Masinga warned that the outcome could affect results at voting station, ward and municipal level.

“Don’t be surprised if there is a slight change in some of the results given that we do not know the outcome of the Section 65 objections that were submitted late and may still be condoned by the Electoral Commission,” she said.

The seven-day period for the commission to programme the results was due to expire on Wednesday, 11 November. KwaZulu-Natal accounted for 11% of all Section 65 objections submitted nationally.

The province recorded a voter turnout of 49% and a spoiled ballot rate of 1.45%. More than 40,000 election staff were deployed, while the province administered over 200,000 special votes, representing 18% of the national total.

Ramaphosa Calls For Responsible Coalition Government As IEC Acknowledges Shortcomings

Addressing the nation after the results announcement at the IEC’s National Results Operations Centre in Midrand on Sunday, President Cyril Ramaphosa urged incoming councillors to put communities ahead of political power struggles.

He said more than 540 political parties and nearly 137,000 candidates had participated in the elections, demonstrating the strength of South Africa’s multi-party democracy.

However, he said voters expected elected representatives to improve their daily lives, particularly amid rising living costs and unemployment.

Ramaphosa said residents wanted reliable electricity, running water, regular refuse collection, maintained infrastructure and safer neighbourhoods.

“These are not unreasonable expectations. They are the basic requirements of a life of dignity,” he said.

The President urged parties to approach coalition negotiations with maturity and humility, warning against treating municipal positions and privileges as the main objective.

He said councils needed to be constituted without unnecessary delays, office-bearers elected through good-faith negotiations and municipal budgets passed on time.

“This is not a weakness of democracy. It is an expression of the choices that the people have made,” he said.

Ramaphosa also warned that essential services should never become bargaining tools during coalition negotiations.

Meanwhile, the IEC declared the elections free and fair, while acknowledging shortcomings in the administration of the process.

Chief Electoral Officer Sy Mamabolo said approximately 188,000 electoral staff had been deployed across 23,696 voting stations. He also reported that the commission had printed just over 100 million ballot papers and deployed approximately 56,000 voter management devices.

Mamabolo acknowledged that the IEC had faced logistical challenges, including a Constitutional Court order issued on 15 October that required changes to candidate lists and resulted in approximately 28 million ballot papers being superseded.

The order affected 181 ANC candidates in six municipalities, but the IEC extended the same arrangement to 32 other political parties in similar circumstances.

“The 2026 local government elections were an unreserved endeavour to affirm the personhood of all voters. We have succeeded in many aspects in this election but we have come short in others,” he said.

IEC chairperson Mosotho Moepya said the commission remained prepared to consider further objections after the declaration of results.

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“No institution can take itself seriously if it does not acknowledge its shortcomings,” he said.

The commission also confirmed that a re-election would be arranged at an affected voting station in Douglas, in the Northern Cape’s Siyancuma Municipality, after political activists allegedly stormed the station and destroyed ballot papers before they could be counted.

In KwaZulu-Natal, the IEC also dismissed 25 temporary election staff members for various breaches, including partisan behaviour at voting stations and failure to comply with the electoral framework.

Despite the challenges, Masinga said none of the province’s 5,028 voting stations had run out of ballot papers.

With coalition talks now taking centre stage, the coming days will determine how political parties translate their election results into governing arrangements across the country.