South Africa's ANC loses ground in local elections as coalition talks loom
The African National Congress fell to 31 percent in municipal elections, its weakest local showing in decades, forcing it into coalition negotiations to govern major cities including Johannesburg.
By Olga Menon ·
South Africa's governing African National Congress is confronting one of its worst electoral setbacks after municipal elections last week left it weakened heading into coalition talks to form city governments across the country.
With 99 percent of ballots counted on Sunday, the party of President Cyril Ramaphosa stood at 31 percent nationally, ahead of the Democratic Alliance at 25 percent but down roughly 14 percentage points from its performance in the 2021 local elections.
The uMkhonto weSizwe party of former President Jacob Zuma took about 10 percent of the vote to finish third, with the remainder scattered among hundreds of smaller parties. Final results were expected to be officially announced at 6pm (16:00 GMT) on Sunday.
Although the ANC remains the largest party in South Africa, its support has eroded steadily as voters express growing frustration over corruption and the party's failure to address unemployment, which exceeds 34 percent more than three decades after the end of apartheid.
Breakdowns in basic services, including water and electricity, have also driven the party's declining share of the vote in local elections over the past 15 years. This time, the ANC failed to secure an outright majority in any of the eight major metropolitan areas, including Johannesburg and Pretoria.
Because no party crossed the 50 percent mark in many cities, among them the commercial hub of Johannesburg, the ANC and the DA will need to work together or reach agreements with smaller parties to form municipal governments. Parties have 14 days to negotiate before city councils are constituted.
ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula described the outcome as "catastrophic" for the party, though he said the ANC would not go begging for positions when coalition negotiations begin soon.
"When the people tell us we have fallen short.. the honest answer is not to argue with them but to go home and put our house in order," Mbalula said on Saturday.
In Johannesburg, the DA led the count with about 35 percent of the vote against 20 percent for the ANC. That result could position DA veteran Helen Zille, who campaigned on fixing potholes and leaking water pipes, as a strong candidate for mayor, depending on the coalition agreements that emerge.
The DA said in a statement that it would open coalition discussions with "political parties that share a commitment to clean and accountable government, rooting out corruption, service delivery for all, the rule of law, and non-racialism".
