Hung Councils Dominate SA’s 2026 Elections as ANC Suffers Worst Result Since 1994

• South Africa's 2026 Local Government Elections produced 69 hung councils from the first 100 decided, with smaller parties set to wield outsized influence
• The ANC recorded its worst national performance since 1994, while ActionSA emerged as a surprise force in Gauteng's major metros
• The IEC chairperson said results would be finalised by the weekend, though figures remain provisional pending outstanding objections

SOUTH AFRICA — Hung councils have defined the early picture of South Africa's 2026 Local Government Elections, with 69 of the first 100 decided results producing no outright winner, leaving smaller parties in a powerful position as coalition negotiations loom.

By Thursday night, with more than 63% of the national vote counted, the ANC had won 21 councils outright, the Democratic Alliance six and the uMkhonto weSizwe Party three. A further 113 councils were still being tallied.

ANC faces worst result since 1994

At the national level, the ANC held 31.65%, followed by the DA at 25.25% and the MK Party at 8.48%. According to IOL, Political analyst Professor André Duvenhage described the elections as a turning point for South Africa, noting the ANC's sustained decline in support.

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He singled out ActionSA as one of the standout performers, saying the party had made particularly strong gains in urban areas and was well-positioned to influence post-election coalition talks.

In Johannesburg, with 38% of votes counted, the DA led with 40.61%, while the ANC sat at 16.64% and ActionSA at 15.94%. In Tshwane, the DA held 34.86%, ActionSA 22.16% and the ANC 20.18%. Ekurhuleni showed the DA ahead at 31.66%, followed by the ANC at 21.3% and ActionSA at 17.94%.

MK Party dominates in KwaZulu-Natal

In KwaZulu-Natal, with 57% of the vote counted, the MK Party led with 33.88%, ahead of the IFP at 23.74% and the ANC at 22.27%. The party had already secured three municipalities outright and was leading in five more.

In eThekwini, the MK Party held a commanding lead at 42.95%, with the DA at 21.02%, the ANC at 16.56% and the IFP at 9.2%. The DA, however, was leading in Msunduzi, which includes Pietermaritzburg, with 37.52%.

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See post about the results so far here:

Coalition prospects spread across provinces

In the Eastern Cape, the ANC led with 46.83% and the DA with 18.2%, with the ANC securing seven councils despite falling below a majority in its overall provincial share. The Northern Cape had 17 of 26 municipalities classified as hung councils after 99% of its votes were counted. The ANC maintained a solid lead in Limpopo at 54.21%, while Cape Town appeared headed for another outright DA majority.

IEC chairperson Mosotho Moepya said the commission aimed to complete the results process by the weekend, cautioning that all figures remained provisional until outstanding objections were resolved.

ANC dismisses decline in votes

Briefly News also reported that African National Congress National Chairperson Gwede Mantashe dismissed his party's steep decline in electoral support as a sign of democratic growth, rejecting the idea that the ANC itself bears any responsibility for the losses. The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), drawing on approximately 13% of voting districts declared, projected the ANC's national support at roughly 31.7%. That figure represents a drop of about 10 percentage points from the 40% the party secured in the 2024 national elections.

Source: Briefly News