Early counts on Nov 5 show ANC vote share sharply reduced to about 31–32% in local elections

On 5 Nov 2026 early tallies from South Africa's municipal elections showed the African National Congress (ANC) with about 31–32% of the national vote in preliminary counts, sharply down from prior municipal results and narrowly ahead of the Democratic Alliance (DA); counting and verification continued across constituencies.

Preliminary results indicating the ANC near 31–32% raise uncertainty about control of major metros and imply more coalition bargaining at municipal level. That could affect near-term political stability, local service delivery and investor sentiment toward South African political risk; fiscal or national policy shifts would depend on final results and subsequent coalition outcomes.

IEC to continue counting; final results and official declarations expected by Sunday, Nov 8, 2026, followed by up-to-two-week coalition negotiations for municipal governments.