Elections Hot

Ramaphosa said the ANC will win an outright majority across the country in the Local Government Elections. He made the claim while campaigning in Mamelodi on Monday.

He said the elections take place on Wednesday of next week. The pollsters who put the DA ahead in at least six metros were not named.Share

Shawn George said water problems persist four years after the end-2022 outage. He said he changed his vote to the DA. Ivan George, a former DA supporter, now backs the ACDP and said DA councillor Genevieve Sherman has never been an activist.

Shayelene Kruger, an unemployed mother of five, campaigns for the DA with a group of about eight people. She described shootings in the area and said: "There's so much blood here". A 20-year-old woman in her group said gangsterism stops young girls from showing peace signs.

A retired man who did not give his name described a high crime rate and said six men tried to rob an elderly neighbour earlier this month. He said the presence of the Defence Force has not brought relief. A 13-year-old boy, Ethen Sass, was run over by a taxi on Fuel Road while he collected water from a tanker.

Darren Jackson, a resident of 17 years, said Pikitup has at times not collected refuse for up to two weeks. Julie Fahmay of Chiswick Old Age Home said the elderly have been neglected.Share

Geordin Hill-Lewis, the DA Federal Leader, seeks a second term as mayor. He says his government created 480,000 jobs in his first term. He pledges to replace 100km each of water and sewer pipe every year.

Roger Solomons, BOSA national spokesperson, proposes 10,000 units a year of affordable housing and a municipal land audit within 90 days. Brett Herron of GOOD/Rise Mzansi proposes a 10 year moratorium on selling public land or granting leases.

Dereleen James of ActionSA proposes a R100-a-night tourist levy to fund free weekday MyCiTi rides. She called an allegation about leaked Crime Intelligence documents a "blatant lie".

Nontando Nolutshungu stands for the EFF and Cheslyn Daniels for the Patriotic Alliance. The ANC shortlist includes Jeremiah Thuynsma and Ndithini Tyhido, the City of Cape Town Leader of the Opposition.Share

ActionSA's Nasiphi Moya is the incumbent Executive Mayor of Tshwane. She says the city has moved from strain to a fully funded budget, with growing cash reserves. She also says due process was followed when the City of Tshwane CFO, Gareth Mnisi, was reinstated in July 2026, and that Council made the decision.

Cilliers Brink, the DA Caucus Leader in Tshwane, blames poor budgeting and neglected infrastructure for costly emergency measures and chances for corruption. He cites six mayors in eight years in the city. He asks voters for five years and 50% to "finish what we started".

Omphile Maotwe, the EFF national Treasurer-General, pledges 40% of jobs and 50% of procurement for young people. She also pledges 50% women's representation. Willie Spies stands for the FF+.

Martha Moshiga, BOSA's Tshwane regional leader, uses the slogan "Stability first. Service always." She pledges to repair 1,000 potholes in her first 100 days. The ANC has not named its candidate, and Kgosi Maepa, a former ANC Tshwane Regional Chairperson, is on its shortlist.Share

Mokholo said unemployment is at 47% and that 47.4% of young people have no jobs. She estimated that around five million young people are without work. Statistics South Africa data puts the youth unemployment rate at approximately 50% when discouraged job seekers are counted, for the second quarter of 2026.

Mokholo said "the old ones have failed us, even the DA". She said young people should support structures and rally behind RISE Mzansi because the party is new and capable.

She also spoke about the kind of leaders she wants. "If we are able to have ethical leaders, that's what we need. We do need new leaders in our communities," Mokholo said.Share

Ramaphosa informed Parliament in writing through a notice dated 21 October. The notice says the troops come from the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).

The President said misinformation about a court judgment led to violence during the protests. One person was killed in Durban just over a week before the notice.

Ramaphosa said the soldiers will be "on standby for any eventualities".Share

Voters registered in a metropolitan municipality will get two ballot papers. Voters registered in a local municipality will get three ballot papers.

Voters can check their registration by sending their 13-digit ID number by SMS to 32810. The IEC also set out which forms of ID it accepts and how voting works.Share

Ramaphosa said the ANC would regain an outright majority in the City of Johannesburg. He said: "We are going to get an outright majority in the metro. That is a given. It’s going to happen." Asked whether the vote would reverse the party's falling support, he replied: "Wait and see".

The ANC won 62% of the vote in the city in 2006, its highest share there. It fell to 58% in 2011 and 44% in 2016, when it lost its outright majority for the first time. In 2021 it won 33%. A Social Research Foundation poll suggests support could fall to 18%.

Most residents complained that taps ran dry for days. ANC regional chairperson and deputy mayor Loyiso Masuku said Johannesburg Water was coming back at 2 pm. He said pressure on the reservoir caused water throttling.

The local councillor said Diepkloof now has more than 38,000 people. Its infrastructure was originally designed for 6,800.Share

Hlabisa is the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA). He is also a member of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Local Government. He spoke after he called the chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).

Hlabisa said preparations such as ballot paper printing, special voting and the inclusion of previously excluded candidates are well underway. He said all systems are go.

"We are satisfied, and we are ready as a country to host the elections," Hlabisa said.Share

Mokgadi spoke after the Poll Dancing live show at the Star Theatre in Cape Town. From the stage he said: "Comedy helps us listen to each other". He told the audience at the end that "democracy is hard".

Mokgadi says comedy can be a tool for education and understanding. He also says there was a real need for satire in a news setting, to give important information in a fun and accessible format.

Stephen Horn, the CEO and creative director of Politically Aweh, said the show was born out of a crazy idea. He said the idea was to make compelling content about politics for young people in South Africa. Zoë Human co-hosts the show.

Politically Aweh began in 2017. It won a South African Film and Television Award for Best Online Content in 2022.Share

Hill-Lewis told supporters the contest for eThekwini is a two-horse race between the DA and the MKP. He said the tight contest is likely to produce a coalition government, and that the DA is best placed to lead the metro.

He also attacked the African National Congress (ANC). Hill-Lewis said the ANC is panicking and becoming desperate, and is not an honest organisation. He said it will use every dirty trick to stay in government so it can keep stealing.

He called on voters to unite behind Hanif Hoosen, who is the DA candidate for eThekwini mayor.Share

Willie Spies is a practising lawyer and former MP. He said he would give up his law practice if elected mayor. He also said his first 100 days would focus on removing corrupt officials.

On coalitions, Spies ruled out putting the ANC in power. He called the DA a likely coalition partner and ActionSA a possible one.

Spies said BEE has enriched a connected few and that trade, not BEE, creates wealth. On crime, he said the metro's 4 000-strong police force could make communities safe if it were properly managed.Share

Malema claimed that the ANC only hires its own members for municipal jobs. He said the EFF would hire the children of Thembisa through an open process, and that everyone would get a job.

He also said poor households should not pay for electricity and water under an EFF-led government. He said the exemption would use SASSA social grant lists to identify those households.

The EFF mayoral candidate for Ekurhuleni, Nthabiseng Tshivhenga, said the party had fulfilled all its commitments. She asked the community to keep voting for the EFF.

The party won 13% of the vote in Ekurhuleni in the 2021 municipal elections. In 2016 it won 11%.Share

Zolisile Sotsu, 63, is one of the 24 residents allocated stands. She said residents have lived at the site since 1993. She asked: "If we vote, what is it that we are voting for? For the rich to be richer while we continue to suffer over 30 years later?"

Resident Sibusiso Gebashe, 52, claimed the city sold the residents' stands to other people. He also said the city's housing offices failed residents with empty promises. Lydia Mazange said the site has no power and the chemical toilets are barely drained, which she called a smell and safety hazard.

The city's human settlements department said the community rejected a plan to move overflow families to Allandale or Rabie Ridge. It said the original approved layout was designed to yield 24 stands, but 70 families need housing. The department said its system may show the 24 as having benefited, because stands linked to ID numbers update automatically.

The city said talks with Eskom and the provincial human settlements department are under way to electrify the site. The provincial department said the City of Johannesburg is responsible for the project. Residents sent a petition in 2019 to the legislature, ANC Luthuli House, the human settlements department and the public protector.Share

Ntshangase blamed poor service delivery for growing public dissatisfaction with municipalities. He said residents of KwaZulu-Natal are sick and tired of municipalities that do not deliver services.

He also claimed that investors would come and unemployment would fall if the DA ran municipalities. He urged young people to vote, saying they are the ones who are unemployed.

DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis was due to address the rally, according to a video caption.Share

Mbalula spoke to community members at Emamnedwini Hall. He said young people without matric should get a stipend through a basic income grant. In his words: "They mustn’t stay there without hope because they don’t have matric."

Mbalula said some employment initiatives are already under way. He said these should not be presented as promises for the future.

Unemployment among people aged 15 to 34 was 47.4% in the second quarter of 2026, up 1.5 percentage points. The number of unemployed young people rose by 264,000 to 5-million.

The mid-term budget did not settle the future of a permanent basic income scheme. National Treasury confirmed the R370 social relief of distress grant will run until March 2028. Treasury said a High Court ruling, if upheld, could widen eligibility and raise the annual cost to between R36bn and R74bn.Share

Rasilingwane said Ekurhuleni needs accountable leadership focused on delivering measurable results. He said the ANC has brought chaos to the city and the DA will replace it with competence.

He gave examples of failing services. A Tembisa grandmother has waited 30 years for a house, and communities in Primrose endured 22 days of water interruptions.

Rasilingwane described his pledges as a commitment to disciplined leadership, decisive leadership and measurable progress. He said: "These pledges are not a claim that every problem will disappear overnight."Share

Mbalula said people who wanted the ANC to collapse threatened the interests of the people. He said the ANC's death would be the death of the people of South Africa. He also said people from his party were being called refugees in Cape Town.

Mbalula said the problem was the person, not the party. He described an individual who gets a job, does not work and puts a hand in the till. He also said that being a councillor is very hard, and that being an MEC is easier because an MEC is far from the people.

He said the ANC-led government intervened so that Tongaat Hulett continues to operate and jobs are saved. He also said the government planned to cut the fuel levy from November 4 to reduce fuel costs and ease pressure on food prices. He cited finance minister Enoch Godongwana's medium-term budget policy statement.

Mbalula said the ANC is very confident that its councillor candidates in the area are loved by the people.Share

IEC CEO Sy Mamabolo said the judgment on candidate lists has made the logistics for the municipal elections harder. The elections take place on 4 November.

Mamabolo said the coming week is a very big week. He said it could decide whether 24 months of IEC planning succeeds or fails.Share