ANC Weighs Next Legal Move After Electoral Court Rejects Candidate Appeal
- The Electoral Court dismissed the ANC's application to include 181 disputed candidates in the 4 November local government elections
- The ruling directly affects six municipalities across the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and the Free State
- ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu announced the party would consider its appeal options following the judgment
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SOUTH AFRICA — The African National Congress has called on its members and supporters to remain calm after the Electoral Court on Wednesday, 16 September 2026, threw out its application to reinstate 181 disputed candidates ahead of the 4 November local government elections.
The ruling leaves the ANC without candidates in two Eastern Cape municipalities entirely. Proportional representation candidates in four additional municipalities will also be affected. The six municipalities impacted are Port St Johns, Ngquza Hill, Walter Sisulu and Sundays River Valley in the Eastern Cape, uMshwathi in KwaZulu-Natal, and Mangaung in the Free State.
What the dispute was about
At the heart of the case was a disagreement over what constitutes a valid candidate submission. The ANC argued that candidate details uploaded onto the Electoral Commission of South Africa's (IEC) online system before the 5pm deadline on 28 August 2026 should count as formally submitted.
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The IEC rejected that position, maintaining that saving or uploading information to its system does not constitute the completion of the formal submission process. The party insisted its challenge was not a request for preferential treatment or a rule change, but rather a bid for the court to clarify the legal standing of candidate data already captured on the IEC's electronic system before the cut-off.
ANC to pursue appeal
Following the judgment, ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu confirmed the party would not let the matter rest.
"Having considered the judgment, the ANC will exercise its legal rights and pursue the appropriate appeal processes," Bhengu said.
She further urged ANC leaders, members and supporters to refrain from making public statements that could complicate or interfere with any further legal proceedings.
IEC welcomes ruling
The IEC welcomed the outcome, saying the judgment provides the clarity needed to finalise candidate lists ahead of the November polls. The commission was expected to publish the definitive list of eligible candidates on the same day as the ruling.
The ANC's decision on whether to appeal will determine if the 181 disputed candidates have any remaining legal avenue to contest the upcoming elections.
DA files papers against ANC's IEC challenge
Previously, Briefy News reported that the Democratic Alliance moved to challenge the African National Congress's attempt to field candidates in six municipalities where the governing party failed to meet the Independent Electoral Commission's nomination deadline. The DA filed papers before the Electoral Court on 9 September 2026, seeking leave to intervene in the ANC's application.
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Source: Briefly News
