ANC Authorizes Coalition Talks After Historic Election Losses

The African National Congress (ANC) has authorized its provincial and regional structures to begin exploratory coalition talks following its worst-ever local government election performance on November 4. National support for the party dropped to 30.7%, down from 45.59% in 2021, leaving major metropolitan councils in Johannesburg, Tshwane, and eThekwini hung.

Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula issued the directive to assess local priorities, though final decisions will be centralized through a national task team and the National Executive Committee. While the ANC is weighing options such as forming minority governments or moving to opposition benches, it has declined to attend a Council of the Left meeting with the SACP, EFF, and MK party. Other parties, including the Inkatha Freedom Party and the MK party—which led in the eThekwini metro—have expressed readiness to negotiate.

Former President Thabo Mbeki characterized the electoral decline as a disaster and urged the party to prioritize institutional survival and internal renewal over maintaining power. Mbeki suggested the ANC should be willing to take opposition benches in areas like Gauteng and criticized party leadership for failing to implement organizational renewal resolutions endorsed at the 2017 and 2022 national conferences. He attributed the losses to poor service delivery and negative perceptions of party leaders.