South Africa begins vote counting in critical local elections amid public frustration

South Africa started counting votes on November 4 in local government elections marked by widespread public frustration over failures in water and electricity supply. These elections for 257 councils are crucial as they gauge the political mood ahead of the 2029 national elections.

Voters expressed anger over persistent issues such as crumbling infrastructure, dry taps, high unemployment exceeding 30%, and rising crime. Moses Mashaba, a 27-year-old street vendor from Soweto, said he voted because “things have been horrible” with frequent water and power outages.

Despite a 14-hour voting day, turnout was significant with 12 million of 29.2 million registered voters casting ballots by 5 pm. However, some young voters like 24-year-old Ntando Sithole chose to abstain, citing skepticism about political change and ineffective leadership.

Voting was largely peaceful, though some logistical issues and confrontations between party supporters occurred. After voting, President Cyril Ramaphosa affirmed that “our democracy is alive” and pledged to rebuild local government structures to fulfill promises to citizens.

The African National Congress (ANC), which has led South Africa since the end of apartheid, is still expected to be the largest party nationally but faces further erosion of support, continuing a trend from the 2021 municipal elections where it fell below 50% of the vote for the first time.