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The Democratic Alliance promised an end to political appointments in public administration as the second-largest party in South Africa’s ruling coalition aims to capture the country’s economic heartland in upcoming local government elections.
The polls represent the first major electoral test for Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, who became DA leader in April, as he seeks to translate his local success into nationwide momentum.
Survey data from the Social Research Foundation, a policy think tank, places ANC support in Johannesburg at 18% among likely voters, down from 30% earlier in the year, with the DA leading at 42%. Separate research by Ipsos indicates that only 38% of South Africans consider their local municipal performance adequate.
Speaking at a national rally in Johannesburg, Hill-Lewis framed the upcoming polls as a direct referendum on municipal governance, contrasting the DA’s administrative track record — regularly achieving clean audits and maintaining highest credit rating — in Cape Town with the infrastructure decay and political instability affecting other major South African cities.
The DA pledged an immediate ban on so-called cadre deployment — the ANC’s long-standing policy of appointing party loyalists to key positions within state institutions and municipal administrations. The ANC argues that cadre deployment ensures public institutions align with its post-apartheid transformation agenda, but critics say the practice is a primary driver of incompetence, corruption, and municipal service breakdowns.
The DA also pledged to ensure that revenue collected from water and electricity tariffs would be used to finance the maintenance and capital expenditure of municipal grid infrastructure, water pipes, and substations.
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South Africa’s 247 municipal councils and more than $33 billion in annual local budgets are up for grabs in the Nov. 4 polls. Beyond the council seats, the elections threaten to entrench multiparty coalition rule after the African National Congress (ANC) lost its outright majority across key metropolitan councils in 2021 — a showing that foreshadowed its historic loss of a parliamentary majority in 2024.
Historically white-led and supported largely by racial minorities, the DA is seeking to expand its appeal in Johannesburg, a city that generates about 16% of South Africa’s total GDP and serves as the financial hub of Africa’s biggest economy.
Johannesburg and surrounding urban centers have suffered years of worsening service disruptions, including power outages, water supply failures, and deteriorating road networks. Business leaders have repeatedly warned that municipal failure poses a risk to national economic growth and corporate investment. “Ordinary life in South Africa has become an extraordinary privilege,” Hill-Lewis told supporters.
The ANC is expected to release its manifesto next week.
Notable
- The left-wing Economic Freedom Fighters party launched its municipal manifesto last month under the campaign slogan “Victory or Death,” pledging to eliminate municipal outsourcing of janitors, security guards, and maintenance workers.