The African National Congress is on course to suffer a bruising defeat in South Africa’s local elections, with the once dominant party of Nelson Mandela falling to under a third of the vote nationally with more than 80% of ballots counted.
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% → suffer → ballots
Wednesday’s fragmented vote marks another stage in the decline of the ANC, which has led national governments since the end of white minority apartheid rule in 1994.
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which → mark → 1994
High unemployment, crime, corruption and poor local service delivery have all contributed to voters turning away from the party.
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voters → contribute → party
The former liberation movement is projected to lose its status as the biggest party in the two most populous provinces, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, as parties began coalition negotiations behind closed doors.
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parties → project → doors
The final results are expected to be announced on Sunday.
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results → expect → Sunday
The centre-right, white-led Democratic Alliance (DA) had 24.1% of the vote, while the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party of the former ANC president Jacob Zuma was on 9.3%.
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party → lead → %
Turnout also rose in Wednesday’s poll.
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Turnout → rise → poll
The election commission estimated that 54.5% of registered voters cast their ballot, up from 46% five years ago.
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% → estimate → %
The final shape of coalitions in some of the country’s biggest cities remained unclear with the final votes still being counted.
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votes → remain → cities
Senior figures in key parties said they would talk with almost anyone, while keeping negotiating strategies under wraps.
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they → say → wraps
In Johannesburg, South Africa’s commercial capital and biggest city, with 4.8 million people, voters have had to contend with regular water and power cuts, uncollected rubbish and potholes.
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voters → have → cuts
The municipality, which has seen 10 changes of mayor in the last decade amid unstable coalitions, has admitted to a 220bn rand (£9.9bn) infrastructure spending backlog.
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which → see → backlog
With just over half of votes counted in Johannesburg, the DA was leading with 40%, having run an energetic campaign under Helen Zille, a 75-year-old former Cape Town mayor.
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DA → count → Zille
The ANC, which leads the current coalition, was in second place on 17.5%.
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which → lead → %
ActionSA, a rightwing party led by Herman Mashaba, was on 15.5%.
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ActionSA → lead → %
Mashaba has pledged never to work with Zille, whom he calls “racist”, something she vehemently denies.
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she → pledge → whom
Many of the ANC’s township strongholds have yet to report full results.
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Many → have → results
The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), a respected thinktank, has projected the DA will finish with 34%, the ANC 20% and ActionSA 16.8%.
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ActionSA → project → %
Coalitions in Gauteng’s three city municipalities are often negotiated together.
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Coalitions → negotiate → municipalities
The DA is leading in all three.
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DA → lead → three
The MK party, led by 84-year-old Zuma as he continues to weather and deny numerous corruption allegations, is expected to displace the ANC as the largest party in KwaZulu-Natal.
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he → lead → Natal
Founded in 2023, it mixes socially conservative Zulu nationalism with pledges to redistribute land and wealth from white to black South Africans.
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it → found → Africans
With half of votes counted in eThekwini municipality, which contains Durban, the MK had 41%, meaning other parties could form a coalition to keep it out of power.
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parties → count → power
Meanwhile, the DA is projected to maintain its majority in Cape Town, despite growing middle-class anger over rising housing costs.
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DA → project → costs
Voters choose a local councillor and a party, with seats allocated via proportional representation.
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Voters → choose → representation
Councillors will then have two weeks to elect mayors and form municipal governments.
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Councillors → have → governments
The Aporia
