South Africa's ANC slumps to worst-ever election result

With no party winning outright in many municipalities, the results set the stage for fraught multiparty coalition negotiations to govern several major South African cities.

South Africa's African National Congress (ANC) was dealt a stinging blow, results showed on Sunday, weakening its hand in coalition talks that will follow to form city governments. While the ANC ended up with 30.76 percent of the vote, its main rival, the Democratic Alliance (DA), received 24.64 percent.

The liberal party is also the ANC main partner in the current national unity government.

Voter turnout stood at 52 percent, up six percentage points from the Covid-hit 2021 municipal elections, said Electoral Commission of South Africa chairperson Mosotho Moepya.

One municipality will rerun its vote after party supporters stormed a polling station and destroyed ballot papers, he added.

Sharp decrease in popularity

The result marks a dramatic reversal for the party of late liberation icon Nelson Mandela, which captured nearly two-thirds of the vote in South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994.

While still the largest party, its support has since dwindled as unemployment topped 34 percent, among the world's highest, while crime and corruption scandals dogged the party.

Water shortages, electricity outages and poor service delivery were among the issues that dominated Wednesday's ballot, as voters weighed the performance of the parties running their towns and cities.

"Where we have fallen short, this movement does not dispute it. Communities have gone without water. Refuse has not been collected. Roads have not been maintained," ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula said on Saturday, describing the results as "catastrophic".

Migrant exodus leaves South African employers short-handed

"We have been weighed in the balance, and where we have been found wanting we dare not quarrel with the scale," he told reporters.

More than half of South Africa's 213 councils have no outright majority, forcing parties into potentially tricky negotiations to assemble governing coalitions.

Previous coalitions have often been plagued by infighting and shifting alliances, leaving local administrations paralysed and basic services neglected.

President Cyril Ramaphosa urged parties to put communities first in coalition talks, warning that essential services must not be held hostage by political disagreements.

"The people have spoken. Their verdict must be respected. Their concerns must be heard and their expectations must now be met," he said on Sunday.

Coalitions in the making

The parties face a tight timetable, with newly elected councils required by law to hold their first meetings within 14 days of the formal declaration of results, when councillors elect mayors and other office-bearers.

All but one of South Africa's eight major cities face coalition negotiations, with the DA securing the only outright majority in Cape Town.

South Africa accused of failing to crack down on anti-immigrant violence

The DA was also leading in Johannesburg, the economic hub, where it fielded 75-year-old veteran politician Helen Zille, nicknamed "Gogo" (grandmother), a longtime ANC critic who built her career in Cape Town.

Former President Jacob Zuma's party uMkhonto weSizwe had 9.76 percent of votes, putting it in third place.

Centre-right ActionSA, founded by former Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba after splitting from the DA, finished fifth nationally but could hold the balance of power in major areas, including Tshwane, home to the capital Pretoria.

The rest was split between hundreds of smaller parties.

 (with newswires)