The ANC has emerged as the winner in two Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality by-elections, retaining Ward 1 and Ward 10 despite challenges from the Patriotic Alliance (PA) and opposition parties, bolstering the party’s momentum ahead of the Local Government Elections in November.

On Wednesday, the ANC secured Ward 10, which includes Vergenoeg, East Bank, Haven Hills, Egoli and parts of Buffalo Flats.

The result came despite the ward’s former ANC councillor, Pearl Hanse, defecting to the PA before the by-election.

The ANC defeated the PA by 1,631 votes, finishing just short of the two-thirds threshold while securing more than 50% support in all four voting districts, with particularly strong performances at Clements Kadalie Hall (80%, up from 47% in 2021) and Amalinda (79%, up from 71%).

The PA emerged as the main opposition force, finishing second overall (with 13% of the vote, a significant increase from its previous

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Emfuleni Mayor Hassan Mako’s office has confirmed that Patriotic Alliance (PA) councillor Bruce Aldrin Nimmerhoudt was mistakenly named for appointment to the municipality’s mayoral committee, after the Democratic Alliance (DA) accused him of illegally serving in two councils.

Mako’s spokesperson, Mphikeleli Msibi, told Inside Metros that the PA had submitted Nimmerhoudt’s name in error as a replacement for Councillor Alfredo Sandamela, but had since corrected the mistake.

“Indeed a mistake was committed when the Patriotic Alliance submitted the name of Cllr Nimmerhoudt as its replacement for Cllr Sandamela. However, they have since corrected that and Cllr Rowan Wilton Lawaak who is to be sworn in [today] is the correct appointment,” Msibi said.

“The Executive Mayor, Cllr Hassan Mako has considered this an honest mistake by the leadership of the PA,” Msibi said.

The clarification follows claims by DA Emfuleni mayoral candidate Kingsol Chabalala that Nimmerhoudt remained a

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The Patriotic Alliance (PA) has tightened its hold on Ward 11 in Malmesbury Wesbank, Swartland Municipality, securing a decisive victory in the final currently scheduled Western Cape by-election before the upcoming local government elections.

The party won 53.26% of the vote in Wednesday’s contest, increasing its support from the previous by-election and comfortably retaining a ward it had captured last year.

The DA finished second on 42%, while the ANC slipped to 4%. The TRUTH party received less than 1% of the vote.

Voter turnout rose to 58.15%, a significant increase from the 48% recorded in the previous by-election and a figure that almost matched turnout levels seen during the 2024 national and provincial elections.

The by-election followed the vacancy created by the departure of the previous PA ward councillor, Dihno White, while Moos Jaanse, who previously contested the ward as an independent, stood under the DA

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The Patriotic Alliance (PA) has secured its fourth consecutive by-election victory off the Democratic Alliance (DA) in George, capturing Ward 16 (New Dawn Park) in a decisive win that further reshapes the balance of power in the Western Cape municipality.

The PA won 65% of the vote, up 22 percentage points, while the DA slumped to 34%, down 12 points from its previous 46%.

The ANC and TRUTH each secured less than 1% of the vote.

GOOD and the Plaaslike Besorgde Inwoners or “Local Concerned Residents” (PBI), which previously polled 15% each in the ward, did not contest.

Voter turnout rose significantly to 52%, up from 44% in the previous contest.

The 65% vote share marks the PA’s highest percentage in George to date, surpassing even its two ward gains in January.

Naellowine Esau has been elected as the new PA councillor.

Reports indicate that the PA

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In the first by-elections of 2026, the Patriotic Alliance (PA) scored two decisive victories against the Democratic Alliance (DA) in George, while the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) mounted a serious challenge to the DA in a traditionally safe suburban ward in Tshwane.

While the DA retained its Tshwane seat, the results exposed new vulnerabilities, particularly in suburban and peri-urban areas, and highlighted the PA’s growing ability to consolidate disaffected voters in the Western Cape.

ALSO READ: Ayanda Dludla charged with 14 counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder for Vanderbijlpark scholar transport

In Tshwane’s Ward 57 (Lyttleton Centurion), the DA held onto the seat with 53% of the vote, down from its previous 59%.

The FF+ surged to 44%, almost tripling its earlier support of 16%, while the ANC collapsed to just 2%. Voter turnout dropped to 21%, compared with 50% at the last

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South Africa’s latest round of municipal by-elections delivered dramatic political tremors on Wednesday night, as the Patriotic Alliance (PA) and ActionSA notched historic victories that signalled shifting voter loyalties and deepening disillusionment with the African National Congress (ANC) in both urban and rural strongholds.

In what some have called one of the most symbolic defeats for the ANC in Gauteng’s heartland, the PA stormed to victory in Ward 29 (Diepkloof–Noordgesig), Johannesburg, securing 30% of the vote, up from 13% in 2021.

The ANC’s support collapsed from 39% to 23%, while the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) rose modestly to 16%.

“The streets spoke, and the message is clear: Ons Baiza Nie! Congratulations to Councillor Ismael Steenkamp and the people of Noordgesig! The Patriotic Alliance has officially WON the by-election in the City of Johannesburg,” the PA said in a celebratory post late on Wednesday.

While the ANC managed to

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The latest round of by-elections across South Africa delivered a mixed picture for the country’s political players.

The African National Congress (ANC) held steady in its Eastern Cape stronghold, while the Patriotic Alliance (PA) made significant inroads in the Western Cape, unsettling both the ANC and the Democratic Alliance (DA) in the process.

On Wednesday, three wards were contested in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape, Knysna on the Garden Route, and Vanrhynsdorp in the Matzikama Municipality on the West Coast.

In King Sabata Dalindyebo Municipality’s Ward 6 (Southernwood, Mthatha), the ANC strengthened its position, improving slightly on its 2021 ward ballot return with 44% of the vote (up from 41%).

Independent candidate Pastor Cwengwa Dlulane, however, made a notable showing, capturing 23% and winning two of the ward’s four voting districts.

The EFF surged to 17%, almost doubling its 2021 tally of 9%, while the UDM slipped

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Four by-elections across three provinces produced dramatic results, with the biggest shock coming from the Western Cape where the Patriotic Alliance (PA) made history by unseating the Democratic Alliance in Amstelhof, Paarl in the Drakenstein Municipality, the second-most populous district in the province.

PA Leader Gayton McKenzie congratulated councilor Veronica Maralack-Boonzaaier of Ward 27 for her victory.

“Thank you very much Patriots, the DA was delivering fake pictures of me with murder suspect to every house, but our people know that we would not lie to them. The WC is no longer a given for the DA,” McKenzie said.

In a major symbolic victory for the PA, the party secured 43% of the vote in Ward 27, surging from just 1% in the previous contest, while the DA’s support plummeted from 58% to 39%.

The African National Congress (ANC) edged up slightly to 16%, while the Concerned

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The latest round of municipal by-elections has revealed shifting political dynamics across South Africa, with notable victories for the African National Congress, the Democratic Alliance and the Patriotic Alliance in three tightly contested wards.

The by-elections took place in Tshwane (Ward 56 – Hatfield/Brooklyn), Knysna (Ward 8 – Concordia/Joodse Kamp), and Mossel Bay (Ward 9 – D’Almeida/Tarka).

In Tshwane, the DA retained its traditional stronghold with a commanding 80% of the vote, a dramatic increase from its 2024 general election performance of 50% in the same ward.

The by-election was triggered by the resignation of DA councillor Jarad Frimmel in April.

Newly elected councillor Tiaan Dippenaar will now represent areas including Hatfield, Brooklyn, New Muckleneuk and Hillcrest.

The ward recorded a voter turnout of just 12%, with DA dominance especially visible in Nieuw Muckleneuk, where more residents turned out than in the larger Hatfield area.

Dippenaar, who

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The African National Congress retained three seats and lost another to the Patriotic Alliance in Wednesday’s by-elections held across the Free State, Eastern Cape and Northern Cape.

But in a worrying sign for the ANC, it retained power with a reduced majority in most instances, which does not bode well for momentum ahead of next year’s local government elections.  

In the Free State in Ward 16 in Ngwathe Local Municipality in the Fezile Dabi district, the ANC retained its seat with 47 % of the vote. But this was down from 62% in the 2021 local government elections.

The ANC’s new councillor is Martha Motsoeneng. The EFF was another big winner in the ward, raising its share of the vote from 18% to 35%. The MK Party got 15% of the vote from a voter turnout of 56,74%.  

In the Eastern Cape, Kenneth Witbooi won a seat for the ANC in Ward 5 of the Kou Kamma Local Municipality in the Sarah Baartman District with a borderline victory of 49,66 %, similar to the 50,21%

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