South Africa’s ANC suffers setback in local elections

What the report says

South Africa’s governing African National Congress (ANC) has emerged from last week’s municipal elections in a weakened position, according to Al Jazeera’s report based on AFP and Reuters. With 99 percent of votes counted on Sunday, the party led by President Cyril Ramaphosa had 31 percent nationally, ahead of the Democratic Alliance (DA) on 25 percent. That marked a sharp fall from the ANC’s performance in the 2021 local elections.

The result leaves the ANC short of outright control in key cities and forces coalition negotiations in several municipalities. In the country’s major metro areas, including Johannesburg and Pretoria, no party won more than half the vote. In Johannesburg, the DA was leading the count with about 35 percent, compared with around 20 percent for the ANC, raising the possibility of a DA-led mayoralty if coalition deals hold.

The ANC has faced a long decline in local support as many voters remain frustrated by corruption, unemployment and poor service delivery, including problems with water and electricity. The party’s secretary-general, Fikile Mbalula, described the outcome as catastrophic, while DA representatives said they would seek agreements with parties that support clean government and accountability.

Former president Jacob Zuma’s uMkhonto weSizwe party placed third with about 10 percent. Final results were expected later on Sunday, and parties were given 14 days to negotiate before city councils are formed.