In brief
President Cyril Ramaphosa urged parties to put service delivery first in the wake of the 2026 local elections, where the ANC remained the largest party with 30.76% of the vote. Competitive seats and many hung councils make coalition talks inevitable, prompting a call for stability from the president. A contrasting perspective from Middle East Monitor notes the ANC’s decline to just over 30% of the national vote, signalling broad electoral challenges.
On Sunday, November 9, 2026, President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed political parties at the Independent Electoral Commission’s Results Operations Center in Midrand, near Johannesburg, urging them to put service delivery above power struggles as they enter coalition negotiations following the local elections.
Ramaphosa said that political friction and a scramble for positions must not undermine municipal stability or delay essential services, echoing the constitutional principle that all political authority derives from the people. "The authority to govern comes from the people. It is not inherited. It is not owned by any political party," he stated, citing the Freedom Charter’s foundational maxim that "the people shall govern."
"The authority to govern comes from the people. It is not inherited. It is not owned by any political party."
According to official IEC figures released that evening, the African National Congress (ANC) remains the country’s largest party, securing 30.76% of the vote and 3,282 council seats. The Democratic Alliance (DA) finished second with 24.64% of the vote and 1,722 seats, followed by the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK Party) with 9.77% and 799 seats, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) with 6.22% and 592 seats, and ActionSA with 5.67% and 320 seats. Other parties and independents together captured 22.94% of the vote, gaining representation across municipal councils.
A total of 14.9 million voters cast ballots, a turnout of 52%, up 6.1 percentage points from the 2021 local government elections. All 213 municipal councils were declared, with 10,526 seats contested. The ANC won outright majorities in 53 municipalities and was the leading party in 128, while the DA secured outright majorities in 12 and led in 32. Seventy‑four councils were won by a single party, and 138 were hung, leaving coalition negotiations inevitable across most councils.
In Johannesburg, the largest city, the DA emerged as the largest party in the 270‑seat municipal council, winning 91 seats, followed by the ANC with 63 and ActionSA with 43. No party crossed the 136‑seat threshold for an outright majority, underscoring the need for coalition building.
While Xinhua reported Ramaphosa’s emphasis on service delivery and stability, the Midnigh Politics Thread hosted on The Avocado site references a Middle East Monitor commentary that frames the election as a setback for the ANC, indicating its share fell to just over 30% nationally. The two outlets present the same statistical picture but differ in tone: Xinhua stresses unity for municipal steadiness, whereas Middle East Monitor highlights the ANC’s decline as a broader electoral challenge.
Both accounts converge on the electoral reality that coalition talks are unavoidable, but they diverge on framing the implications: Xinhua underscores collaborative governance for service delivery, while the Middle East Monitor points to the ANC’s reduced dominance as a signal of shifting political dynamics.
