Helen Zille Confident DA Will Win Johannesburg as 2026 Local Government Elections Votes Are Counted
- DA Johannesburg mayoral candidate Helen Zille spoke to media at the National Results Operations Centre on Thursday as vote counting continued
- With 22% of votes counted, the DA held a lead of nearly 40% in Johannesburg as of 4:20 pm
- IEC chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo provided an update on the number of results slips received and entered into the system
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JOHANNESBURG — Helen Zille, the Democratic Alliance mayoral nominee for Johannesburg, voiced optimism on Thursday regarding her party’s prospects of securing top standing in the metro following the 2026 local council elections held on Wednesday.
In an interview with TimesLIVE at the National Results Operations Centre, Zille indicated that while initial tallying showed positive momentum, the final outcome remains undetermined.
“I think we will be the biggest party, but we’ll see what we do with the results afterwards. I feel positive, and I hope it will go well,” Zille stated.
Helen Zille defends DA lead in Johannesburg
At 4:20 pm on Thursday, with 22% of ballot tallies processed, the DA maintained an early lead in Johannesburg with 39.71% of total cast votes. Zille noted that gaining ground across certain polling districts posed difficulties, yet expressed satisfaction with the execution of the party's campaign.
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Zille submitted her ballot at Emmarentia Primary School on Wednesday, describing her voting experience as positive while commending citizens who cast their votes.
Helen Zille expresses confidence in election results
IEC Chief Electoral Officer Sy Mamabolo provided a status report on nationwide counting operations. Out of 66,073 total expected result sheets covering metro, district, and municipal councils, 23,444 (amounting to 35.5%) had arrived at commission centres by Thursday. Among those, 22,983 were loaded into the electoral system database and 16,791 completed full independent auditing checks.
The Electoral Commission of South Africa continues counting and validating ballot papers, with official final declarations for the 2026 municipal elections set to be released over the next few days.
View a post by the IEC about the elections on X:
Jub Jub warns voters about Helen Zille
In a related article, Briefly News reported on Jub Jub’s warning that Helen Zille and the DA could make Johannesburg unaffordable for Black residents if they win the upcoming elections. He cited Cape Town and Tshwane as examples of cities where he says rising costs and urban policies have pushed people to the margins.
His post prompted debate on X about housing affordability, racial exclusion and whether his claims hold merit. Jub Jub described Johannesburg as “our HEART” and warned that the city could face the same pattern.
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Source: Briefly News
