Reeling from its worst election showing ever, top officials from South Africa’s African National Congress began a meeting Thursday to assess the damage and map out a coalition strategy after voters stripped its municipal dominance.
The ANC, Africa’s oldest liberation movement, has long relied on the political capital of its anti-apartheid legacy. But in last week’s local government elections, it secured only about 31 percent of the vote.
Though it remained the largest party nationally, support fell sharply across key urban centres, including Johannesburg and Pretoria, as voters punished President Cyril Ramaphosa’s party over corruption scandals and its failure to deliver basic public services.
The ANC national executive committee, the party’s highest decision-making body, will adopt a framework to guide coalition negotiations and hear reports on initial talks with other parties, the ANC said.
“We respect the choices voters made and acknowledge the decline in our support,” spokeswoman Mahlengi Bhengu said, adding that the ANC had a “clear” plan that can improve the lives of all South Africans.
“We are going to this meeting confident in the programme and determined to put it to work,” she said.
The meeting is being held under the leadership of top officials, including Ramaphosa, who cancelled a planned appearance in parliament to answer lawmakers’ questions.
– Hung councils –
Cape Town was the only one of South Africa’s eight major metros where a single party secured an outright majority. The liberal Democratic Alliance (DA), the ANC’s closest rival, won 56.4 percent of the vote there.
Elsewhere, fragmented results will mean complex coalition bargaining.
The ANC was already forced to share power nationally after losing its parliamentary majority in a 2024 general election, entering a government of national unity with nine other parties.
The party said on Wednesday its response would not be reduced to “negotiating for positions” but would focus on improving South Africans’ lives and advancing the party’s renewal.
Previous local coalitions have been plagued by infighting, shifting loyalties and collapsing majorities, often leaving councils paralysed and basic services neglected.
Under South African law, newly elected councils must convene within 14 days of the formal declaration of results, to elect mayors and other office-bearers.
Thursday’s meeting also comes as the ANC approaches a leadership transition, with the party expected in the coming months to choose the candidate to lead it into a 2029 general election.
Local media have reported that some within the movement want Ramaphosa to step down as ANC president before the end of his term, arguing the party needs a reset after its latest electoral blow.
Ramaphosa has dismissed speculation that he intends to resign.
