South Africa: ANC Losing Wall-to-Wall Support As ActionSA, DA Show Growth

The African National Congress, usually called the ANC, is South Africa’s major governing political party and a historic movement in the country’s politics. “Wall-to-wall support” means the party once held overwhelming backing across many municipalities and provinces. It suggests broad dominance, not that every voter supported it.

The article shows why that phrase matters. The ANC is now losing support in places where it previously enjoyed near-total control. In Mpumalanga, it risks losing majorities in Thaba Chweu and Victor Khanye. In KwaZulu-Natal, it is being wiped out in Endumeni and Impendle.

This signals a major political shift. The party’s losses are reaching rural areas as well as cities, including former strongholds. That could reduce ANC control of councils, force coalition governments, and weaken the party’s wider political position. The CSIR model also forecasts national declines for the ANC, MK party, and EFF.

The article describes a broad decline rather than a problem confined to one city. The ANC is losing support in cities and rural areas, across municipalities and provinces where it once had overwhelming backing. The warning signs therefore reach several layers of local politics at once.

Examples appear across the country. Mpumalanga municipalities such as Thaba Chweu and Victor Khanye could lose ANC majorities. In KwaZulu-Natal, Endumeni and Impendle are described as places where the ANC is being wiped out. Gauteng losses stretch beyond its three metros, affecting municipalities, wards, and township communities.

The party is vulnerable in Lesedi, Mogale City, and Emfuleni, as well as wards in Soweto, Atteridgeville, Soshanguve, and Tembisa. The article also identifies risk in the Eastern Cape. The CSIR model adds a national warning, forecasting further ANC decline, alongside declines for MK and EFF.

The named places show how widely the ANC’s position is under pressure. In Mpumalanga, it could lose majorities in Thaba Chweu and Victor Khanye. In KwaZulu-Natal, the article says the party is being wiped out in Endumeni and Impendle.

The Eastern Cape provides another serious example. The Inxuba Yethemba Municipality could be lost to a DA-led coalition. In Gauteng, the ANC faces heavy losses beyond the three metros. Lesedi, Mogale City, and Emfuleni are all identified as places where it may lose wards or municipal control.

The pressure also reaches communities that were once described as the ANC’s “bread and butter.” These include wards across Soweto, Atteridgeville, Soshanguve, and Tembisa. The article does not give final results for every place because counting was still under way. It presents these areas as vulnerable based on the emerging results.

A party has a municipal majority when it controls more than half the seats on the local council. Losing that majority means it may still be the largest party, but it can no longer govern alone with reliable control. The change matters because councils make local decisions and choose municipal leadership.

For example, if the ANC wins many seats in Thaba Chweu but falls below half, it would need support from another party to secure key votes. That support could come through a formal coalition or issue-by-issue agreements. If another group gathers more partners, the ANC could lose control altogether.

The article says the ANC risks losing majorities in Thaba Chweu and Victor Khanye. It also reports threats to municipal control in Gauteng. The final outcome depends on all votes being counted and, where no party has a majority, on negotiations among the parties represented on each council.

A coalition is an agreement between parties that together control enough council seats to govern. A DA-led coalition does not require the DA to win a majority by itself. It needs the DA and its partners to command more than half the council, or enough support to win key votes.

Suppose the ANC is the largest party but falls short of a majority. The DA could negotiate with smaller parties or independents. If those groups support the DA’s candidate for mayor and its governing arrangements, the coalition could control the council. The exact deal would depend on the seat totals and party negotiations.

The article identifies Inxuba Yethemba Municipality as a possible example. It could be lost by the ANC to a DA-led coalition. Because counting was still progressing, that outcome was not presented as final. The report shows how losing support can open control to an alliance rather than a single winning party.

When the ANC loses municipal control, another party or coalition can choose the mayor, form the executive, and set the council’s governing priorities. The ANC may remain represented, but it would no longer direct the municipality alone. If no group has a majority, governing depends on agreements among several parties.

That can change how councils operate. Coalition partners must agree on budgets, appointments, policies, and major votes. A party that withdraws support can threaten the governing arrangement. These effects are general features of coalition government, while the article specifically reports possible losses of municipal control.

The immediate political consequence is visible in Gauteng, where the ANC is at risk in Lesedi, Mogale City, and Emfuleni. Inxuba Yethemba could also move to a DA-led coalition. More broadly, the CSIR model’s forecast of national ANC decline suggests that local losses may add pressure to the party beyond individual councils.

South African municipal elections generally use two linked systems. Voters choose a ward councillor, while parties receive additional council seats through proportional representation. In some municipalities, voters also choose a mayor directly; in others, the council elects the mayor. These arrangements are established background, not explained in the article itself.

The mechanism connects local votes to power. A party can lose wards, fall below a council majority, or need coalition partners even if it remains the largest group. The article’s examples include vulnerable wards in Soweto, Atteridgeville, Soshanguve, and Tembisa, alongside municipal risks in Gauteng and Mpumalanga.

Local losses matter nationally because they reduce a party’s elected presence, control, and support base. The article reports that the CSIR model forecasts national declines for the ANC, MK party, and EFF. The emerging municipal results therefore point to a wider change in South Africa’s political balance, although counting was still under way.