Cape Town – The African National Congress (ANC) remained South Africa’s largest political party as the counting of votes in the 2026 Local Government Elections entered its final stages, but the results point to a sharply weakened national position and a new wave of coalition politics.
According to reports, about 95% of votes had been counted by Friday, with the ANC on 31.2% nationally, followed by the Democratic Alliance (DA) on 24.4% and the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party on about 9.6%.
The ANC’s result represents a significant decline from the 45.6% it secured in the 2021 local elections, reinforcing the party’s continuing loss of electoral support.
Reuters reported that, with 90% of votes counted, the ANC was on about 32% and the DA on 24%. The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) projected that the final national result would be around 31% for the ANC and 24.5% for the DA.
The DA has emerged as the strongest opposition party, leading in several major metropolitan municipalities, including Johannesburg, Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and Nelson Mandela Bay. It has also retained its outright majority in Cape Town.
The major exception is eThekwini, where former president Jacob Zuma’s MK Party is leading, although it is not expected to secure an outright majority.
Major urban centres
The results are also expected to produce extensive coalition negotiations. IOL reported that 110 municipal councils were hung, meaning no party had secured enough seats to govern alone.
The growing importance of coalition negotiations was also highlighted by DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis, who said: “The more formal discussions will begin today or in the coming days,” according to The Citizen.
The ANC’s decline has been particularly evident in major urban centres. In Johannesburg, the DA was leading while the ANC had fallen well below its 2021 support. In Buffalo City, however, the ANC retained the lead with about 42% of the vote, while Mangaung was heading for a closely fought contest between the ANC and DA.
The Electoral Commission (IEC) said results were still provisional pending verification and objections. SAnews reported that the commission had achieved a 91% completion rate by Friday afternoon, with results finalised in 150 of the 213 municipalities.
“The results remain provisional until all objections and verification processes have been concluded,” the IEC said.
With the final results expected over the weekend, attention will now shift from vote counting to negotiations over who will govern the country’s municipalities.
The outcome represents another major setback for the ANC ahead of the 2029 national elections, while the DA, MK Party and smaller opposition parties face the challenge of turning electoral gains into stable local governments.
Follow African Insider on Facebook, X and Instagram
Picture: X/@IECSouthAfrica
For more African news, visit Africaninsider.com
Compiled by Betha Madhomu
