IEC says 2026 election results come in faster than 2021
Ongoing: Elections Hot
The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) said 18 municipalities had finished the results process by 9am on Thursday, against seven at the same point in 2021. It had received 23,444 results slips, or 35.5% of the 66,073 expected.
The IEC said it had captured 22,983 results slips, or 34.8%. Of these, 16,791 had been independently audited, which is 25% of the total. The results come from local municipalities, metros and district councils.
Chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo said the pace was faster than in the previous municipal elections. He said the IEC achieved this despite longer ballot papers, more contestants and expected higher voter turnout. He said slips are captured twice in front of party agents and observers, and the audit covers all results, not a sample.
Helen Zille, the DA's Johannesburg mayoral candidate, said she expected the DA to be the biggest party in Gauteng. She said she could speak only for Johannesburg. Zille said the party's hands-on campaign had largely paid off, though reaching voters was hard.
Key facts
- Who
- Sy Mamabolo (IEC chief electoral officer); Helen Zille (DA Joburg mayoral candidate); Electoral Commission of South Africa (election management body that is processing the 2026 local government election…); Democratic Alliance (political party)
- What
- The Electoral Commission of South Africa said 23,444 results slips (35.5% of 66,073 expected) had been received by 9am Thursday, with 22,983 captured and 16,791 independently audited. Chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo said the pace compares favourably with 2021, when only seven municipalities had been completed at the same time. DA Joburg mayoral candidate Helen Zille said she anticipated the…
- When
- 5 November 2026
- Where
- South Africa, Gauteng, Johannesburg
- Status
- Reported