ANC records worst-ever result in South Africa's municipal elections but remains largest party

South Africa's African National Congress (ANC) recorded its worst-ever election result in municipal elections held on Wednesday, 4 November 2026. It won roughly 30% of the vote. DW reports the final tally, published on Sunday, as less than 31%. The Hindu reported around 30% with 99% of ballots counted.

The ANC remained the largest party by overall vote share. The Democratic Alliance (DA), the main opposition party, won about 25%.

The DA retained control of Cape Town and performed strongly in Johannesburg and Pretoria. In several major cities, no party won an outright majority. Coalition negotiations are expected to form municipal governments.

Voter frustration over failing municipal services, including water and electricity outages, and over corruption were central issues in the election. The ANC's support has declined over more than a decade of successive elections. In the 2024 general election, the party lost its outright parliamentary majority for the first time in South Africa's democratic era. This led to a coalition national government.

What else is reported

According to DW, the Electoral Commission said on Saturday that the ANC lost its majority in six of the eight metropolitan regions. DW does not name them. DW also reports that the DA won an absolute majority in Cape Town and is expected to form coalitions that exclude the ANC. The Hindu, by contrast, reports that the ANC could be part of governing coalitions in hung councils.

According to The Hindu, the ANC was on course to lose its position as largest party to the DA in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Ekurhuleni. The Hindu reports that Jacob Zuma's MK Party held the third-largest share, at around 10%, and that more than 500 parties contested the election. It also reports that the DA fielded its former leader, 75-year-old Helen Zille, as its mayoral candidate in Johannesburg.

The reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not include turnout figures or describe any coalition agreements reached.

What is disputed

The reports differ on the ANC's share in the 2021 local elections. DW puts it at 46%. The Hindu puts it at 45%, the first time the ANC fell below 50% in any election. The Hindu describes this year's result as a drop of about 15 percentage points.

What each side says

ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula called the result catastrophic. "This has been a very catastrophic outcome for the ANC ... as much as we are the largest party, it has been catastrophic for the movement," DW quoted him as saying. "We cannot ask the people to trust us merely because of our history," he added, according to DW.

President Cyril Ramaphosa, the ANC leader, has not directly addressed the result, according to DW. In his weekly presidential letter, he wrote that "municipal failures have contributed to declining public trust and confidence in democratic governance."

DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis said his party had "taken a big step forward", according to The Hindu. "We have already reached out to many parties over the last 24 hours and will continue to do so today," DW quoted him as saying.

Political analyst Daniel Silke told AFP, according to DW: "It's the ANC's worst result in history."

Analysis

The result extends a decline in ANC support that has been visible for over a decade, and it shifts attention to coalition-building in several major cities. Outcomes there may depend on whether the DA forms coalitions without the ANC, as DW reports is expected, or whether the ANC joins governing coalitions in hung councils, as The Hindu suggests is possible. Either path could affect how municipal services are managed. The result may also have implications for relations within the national coalition government. The only analyst quoted in the reports, Daniel Silke, said via DW that the result will undermine the ANC's authority locally and nationally; how far that extends remains uncertain.

Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.