Johannesburgers vote in local election as ANC faces pressure

Voters across South Africa cast ballots on Wednesday in local elections that will determine leadership for the country's eight major city municipalities, 44 district councils, and 205 local councils. The results will serve as a direct measure of public confidence in the African National Congress, which has experienced a steady drop in support over the past ten years.

Johannesburg, the nation's largest city and primary economic center, is the focal point of this contest. Despite its status as Africa's richest city, it suffers from persistent problems with water and electricity that have fueled resident frustration. The city has changed mayors five times in the four years since the previous local election. It is currently run by a fragile coalition led by the ANC, but the Democratic Alliance is targeting the seat for control.

The DA has nominated Helen Zille, its former national leader and a 75-year-old veteran politician, to lead the charge. She has campaigned on a platform of exposing local government failures through high-visibility stunts, such as snorkeling in a flooded road trench and rowing an inflatable boat through a large water leak. Although voters do not elect mayors directly, they select the council members who make that choice, often leading to coalition-building where small parties hold decisive voting power.

The ANC last held over 50% of the local vote in 2021, marking the first time it fell below that threshold since the end of apartheid in 1994. The party subsequently lost its parliamentary majority in the 2024 national election and entered a national coalition government with the DA and other partners. President Cyril Ramaphosa remained in power, but the parties remain fierce competitors at the local level. Zille's campaign in Johannesburg tests whether the DA can expand its influence beyond its traditional base in Cape Town.

This election is also the first local vote contested by the MK Party, founded by former President Jacob Zuma. Zuma was expelled from the ANC in 2024 after launching his new party following his resignation in 2018 due to corruption allegations. The MK Party finished as the third largest group in Parliament after the 2024 national election and maintains strong support in KwaZulu-Natal.

Key issues driving the vote include inadequate public services, high unemployment, and crime rates. Immigration has also become a prominent topic, with protests against undocumented migration gaining national attention in recent months. Several parties have made opposition to illegal immigration a central part of their campaigns in the country of 62 million.