JOHANNESBURG, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- Millions of South Africans headed to polling stations across the country's nine provinces on Wednesday to cast their ballots in the 2026 local government elections, as voters weighed in on the performance of municipal authorities and the future of local governance amid persistent service delivery challenges and mounting political competition.
PRESIDENT URGES ACCOUNTABILITY
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, accompanied by First Lady Tshepo Motsepe, cast his ballot at Hyde Park High School in Ward 90 in Johannesburg.
Speaking to reporters after voting, Ramaphosa described the queues at polling stations across the country as an encouraging sign of democratic participation.
"As one looks at the television screens, the queues that are all over the country just make this a very special and historic day. This is democracy at work," he said, expressing confidence in the electoral process and urging eligible citizens to exercise their constitutional right to vote.
He also called on newly elected councillors from all political parties to commit themselves to public service and ensure the effective delivery of essential municipal services.
Beyond domestic politics, Ramaphosa addressed recent developments in South Africa's trade relations with the United States, following the Trump administration's announcement on Monday that it intended to terminate South Africa's benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), effective Jan. 1, 2027.
"The exclusion from AGOA is indeed a negative for us," Ramaphosa said, adding that South Africa was not the only country facing such a decision.
He described AGOA as a unilateral trade arrangement determined by the United States and said South Africa would seek to place greater emphasis on negotiating a bilateral trade agreement with Washington.
"Now, we must understand that AGOA is a unilateral trade arrangement that the United States decides on doing. We want to focus more on a bilateral trade agreement where both parties sit down and negotiate trade rules," he said.
VOTERS DEMAND BETTER SERVICES
At polling stations, voters expressed satisfaction with the voting process while calling for more responsive and accountable local government.
"The voting process was seamless," said voter Mandisa Kadalie, stressing that voting was an important way for citizens to hold elected representatives accountable, particularly over infrastructure challenges such as water shortages.
Lerato Sekhukhune, 40, said she had completed the voting process quickly and urged newly elected representatives to address persistent problems, including unreliable water supplies, electricity disruptions and municipal inefficiency.
"It is important for people to vote because some people died during the liberation struggle for the right to vote, which should not be taken for granted," she said.
Candidates from different political parties also highlighted basic service delivery as a major priority.
Renate van Onselen, the Democratic Alliance candidate for ward councillor in Ward 90 in Johannesburg, said the voting process had proceeded efficiently. She pledged to prioritise reliable electricity, water security and regular waste collection if re-elected.
Meanwhile, political analysts expect coalition arrangements to remain a defining feature of local government after the elections.
Laurence Caromba, a researcher at the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection, said many municipalities across the country were likely to be governed by coalitions involving multiple political parties.
Addressing the media at 1 p.m. local time (1100 GMT), Chief Electoral Officer Sy Mamabolo said 98 percent of the country's 23,696 voting stations had opened as scheduled at 7 a.m.
Some delays were reported in a limited number of areas due to community protests and heavy rainfall, particularly in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, but voting was generally proceeding smoothly across the country.
"As of 10 a.m., preliminary indications were that 3.5 million voters had already cast their ballots across the country," Mamabolo said.
"The Commission is encouraged by the enthusiasm and eagerness demonstrated by voters across all nine provinces," he added.
LOCAL GOVERNANCE UNDER SCRUTINY
The elections are a major test of South Africa's local governance system and evolving political landscape. They will determine the composition of municipal councils nationwide, which are responsible for providing essential services, including water, electricity, sanitation and waste management, as well as maintaining local roads and infrastructure.
The ruling African National Congress (ANC), which has governed South Africa since the end of apartheid in 1994, faces a challenging electoral environment following a prolonged decline in electoral support.
In the 2021 local government elections, the ANC received approximately 46 percent of the national vote, falling below the 50-percent threshold for the first time in its history. In the 2024 national and provincial elections, the party also lost its majority in the National Assembly, prompting it to form a Government of National Unity with several other political parties.
Johannesburg, the country's economic hub and largest metropolitan municipality, is among the key electoral battlegrounds. Persistent water and electricity supply problems, deteriorating infrastructure and political instability within the municipal coalition have made service delivery and administrative effectiveness central issues in the campaign.
More broadly, the elections are taking place amid growing public scrutiny of municipal performance. Communities across the country are demanding more reliable basic services, improved infrastructure management and greater accountability from local authorities.
The growing fragmentation of the political landscape also means that coalition negotiations are likely to play an important role in determining the composition and stability of municipal governments after the vote.
Against this backdrop, the peaceful and credible conduct of the elections is crucial to maintaining public confidence in South Africa's democratic institutions.
As voting continues, the Electoral Commission of South Africa and law enforcement agencies face the immediate task of ensuring that voters can exercise their rights without intimidation or disruption, while safeguarding the integrity of ballot counting and the credibility of the final results. ■
