LOCAL ELECTIONS 2026: IEC finalises ballot while ANC faces exclusion in six municipalities

The IEC has finalised the candidates who will contest the 4 November local government elections as the ANC faces being completely shut out in two municipalities and affected in four others. The commission says electoral deadlines cannot be bent to accommodate parties that fail to complete the required process.

The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has finalised the list of candidates who will contest the 4 November local government elections, leaving the ANC to face the consequences of a candidate list blunder that has resulted in the exclusion of 181 of its candidates across six municipalities after an Electoral Court ruling.

On Wednesday, 16 September, the Electoral Court dismissed the ANC’s challenge against the IEC’s exclusion of candidates whose nominations were not finalised before the 5pm deadline on 28 August. The ANC has since resolved to appeal against the judgment.

But while the party considers its next legal move, the IEC has proceeded with the election timetable and is preparing to publish the final list of contestants. IEC chief electoral officer Sy Mamabolo said on Wednesday that the commission had noted the court’s decision and would now proceed with election preparations.

“We have noted the decision of the Electoral Court in relation to the application that was made by the ANC. We believe that the outcome creates certainty about those who are eligible to participate and we just know that and we implement and proceed with the activities that underpin the election timetable,” he said.

The commission revealed that 136,790 candidates had satisfied the statutory requirements to contest seats across the country’s eight metropolitan, 44 district and 205 local municipalities.

Of these candidates, 98,219 are party-nominated ward candidates, 38,571 are party candidates contesting PR seats and 621 are independent candidates contesting ward seats.

A total of 10,526 seats will be contested in the elections, compared with 10,478 in 2021. The number of certified candidates has increased substantially, from 95,427 in 2021 to 136,790 this year.

The ANC’s candidate list dispute has since raised the question of what will now happen to voters who may have wanted to vote for ANC candidates who will now not appear on the ballot, particularly in Ngquza Hill and Port St Johns.

IEC deputy CEO for electoral operations Masego Sheburi said the commission could not make exceptions to the election timetable for contestants who had failed to complete the required process.

He said the timelines were designed to protect the right to participate in free and fair elections by ensuring all contestants knew what was required of them and when they had to act.

“The right to vote does not only mean an end there on the right to vote. It is hollow if it is not matched by the right to vote in free and fair elections,” he said.

Sheburi said the election timetable was intended to provide certainty and fairness, and that the commission could not be placed in a position where it made decisions in favour of individual contestants while the electoral process was under way.

“This is so that contestants know what is required of them and must act.