“The African National Congress is making a final legal effort to restore at least 180 candidates to the ballot for South Africa’s 4 November 2026 local government elections after losing its challenge against the Electoral Commission of South Africa over incomplete candidate-list submissions. The dispute could significantly affect contests in six municipalities while testing the balance between strict electoral deadlines, constitutional voting rights and the growing political competition facing the ANC.”
The African National Congress (ANC) is making a last-ditch legal effort to restore at least 180 of its candidates to the ballot for South Africa’s 4 November 2026 local government elections, placing the country’s governing party and the electoral timetable in a high-stakes confrontation with the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). The Constitutional Court is being asked to overturn an Electoral Court ruling that upheld the exclusion of ANC candidates after the party failed to complete the final electronic submission of candidate lists in six municipalities.
The dispute has become one of the most consequential political-party stories of the election campaign because the affected municipalities include Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality and several municipalities in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. The outcome could influence which parties are able to contest for council seats, while also affecting the balance of power in areas where the ANC has historically been strong.
The immediate dispute centres on the IEC’s electronic candidate nomination system. The ANC maintains that its administrators uploaded the required candidate information and supporting documents before the 28 August deadline, but failed to press the system’s “submit as final” button in the affected municipalities before the 5pm cut-off. The party argues that the final button was an administrative or software step rather than a substantive legal requirement under the Municipal Electoral Act.
In court papers, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has argued that excluding the candidates could infringe the constitutional rights of both candidates and voters. The party says voters in affected wards could lose the opportunity to support ANC candidates of their choice, while nominated party members could be prevented from standing for public office. Business Day reported that the ANC is asking the Constitutional Court to intervene urgently and, if necessary, require the IEC to reprint ballot papers.
The IEC has rejected the ANC’s interpretation. In an affidavit, deputy chief electoral officer Akhtari Henning argued that candidate details had to be finally submitted through the prescribed electronic process for the nomination to be valid. Eyewitness News reported that the IEC believes the ANC’s case has limited prospects of success and warned that the legal challenge is now testing an electoral timetable that has already moved into the ballot-printing stage.
The commission’s position is significant because electoral administration depends on fixed deadlines. Once parties are given a common closing time, changing the rules for one party can create questions about fairness, equal treatment and the reliability of the electoral process. The IEC has also pointed to the fact that other political parties faced similar problems with incomplete submissions. Business Day reported that 2,274 candidates from 45 political parties were rejected because their submissions were not fully completed by the deadline.
For the ANC, however, the issue is not merely administrative. Party secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has warned that an unsuccessful Constitutional Court appeal could have a devastating impact on the ANC’s performance in the municipal elections. The party is already entering the campaign under pressure following years of declining electoral support, difficult coalition politics and criticism over municipal service delivery.
The candidate-list dispute could therefore have consequences beyond the number of councillors directly affected. If the ANC is prevented from contesting certain proportional-representation seats, it could lose opportunities to influence council composition even in municipalities where it remains competitive. In some areas, the party could also face difficulty forming or leading municipal governments because rival parties would have a clearer field.
Opposition parties have already begun positioning themselves to exploit the openings. Eyewitness News reported that the Democratic Alliance has announced mayoral candidates in Port St Johns and Ingquza Hill in the Eastern Cape, two municipalities where the ANC has traditionally enjoyed substantial support. DA Eastern Cape leader Andrew Whitfield described the ANC’s failure as an opportunity for voters seeking an alternative administration.
The political significance of the case is especially clear when considered alongside wider evidence of electoral volatility. An analysis reported by TimesLIVE and Sowetan found that the ANC suffered more ward-level losses in by-elections than any other party after the 2021 local elections. Across 435 ward by-elections held between February 2022 and June 2026, 120 changed hands, representing 27.6% of contests. The proportion increased from about 23% in 2022 and 2023 to nearly 30% in 2025.
Importantly, the losses have not translated into one dominant challenger. The IFP, DA, Patriotic Alliance, EFF and MK Party have all gained wards in different by-elections. That fragmentation means the November election is likely to produce a highly competitive and potentially coalition-driven political landscape.
The ANC candidate crisis could intensify that fragmentation. Where the governing party cannot field a full slate, voters may be forced to consider other parties, while opposition organisations gain additional space to campaign on service delivery, governance and local accountability. Even if the Constitutional Court ultimately restores the candidates, the controversy has already created a political narrative about organisational discipline and campaign readiness.
The dispute also comes as the IEC says broader preparations for the election remain on track. The commission says voting districts have been reviewed, voting stations confirmed and officials recruited for about 23,700 voting stations. Training is under way, and the IEC is working through hundreds of projects needed for election day. However, the commission has acknowledged that several court battles are continuing close to voting day, many involving political parties and disputes over who should be recognised as legitimate contestants.
That context raises the stakes of the Constitutional Court decision. The ANC is not simply seeking relief for individual candidates; it is asking the court to determine how constitutional rights, electoral legislation and electronic election administration should interact. A ruling in its favour could reopen questions about ballot preparation and require the IEC to make changes only weeks before voters go to the polls. A ruling against the ANC would reinforce the principle that parties must comply strictly with nomination procedures and deadlines.
There is also an important institutional question about digital elections administration. As political parties increasingly rely on online systems to submit candidates, documents and other electoral information, the legal meaning of technical steps becomes more important. The ANC’s argument is that a completed upload should carry greater legal weight than a final software command. The IEC’s position is that the formal electronic process must be completed exactly as prescribed to ensure certainty and equal treatment.
The court will therefore have to balance practical realities against the need for predictable electoral rules. Political parties need certainty about deadlines, while voters need meaningful choices. Candidates also have constitutional rights to participate in public life, but those rights operate within laws and procedures designed to make elections manageable and credible.
The controversy has also exposed internal pressure within the ANC. The party has faced reports of disputes over candidate lists, including legal challenges by members who allege problems with the selection or handling of candidates. These disputes are occurring while the party is attempting to project unity and convince voters that it remains capable of governing municipalities effectively.
At the same time, ANC leaders continue to campaign on service delivery, employment, local economic development and improved municipal governance. The party is attempting to persuade voters that it can correct weaknesses that have contributed to dissatisfaction. The candidate-list controversy complicates that message because it shifts public attention from policy promises to questions about administrative execution.
The final outcome will be closely watched in municipalities such as Mangaung, where the absence of ANC candidates could materially change the political contest. It will also be watched in Eastern Cape municipalities where opposition parties are already preparing to compete more aggressively. The Democratic Alliance is not the only beneficiary of the uncertainty: the IFP, EFF, MK Party, Patriotic Alliance and other parties are competing in an increasingly fragmented environment.
The Constitutional Court’s eventual decision will therefore have both legal and political consequences. If the court allows the ANC candidates to return, the party will regain an important part of its electoral machinery but will still face questions about campaign momentum and organisational discipline. If the court refuses, the ANC will have to campaign under a significant disadvantage in affected municipalities, while opponents will have a rare opportunity to challenge the party in areas where it has historically been dominant.
For South African voters, the immediate issue is ultimately about choice. Municipal elections determine who controls councils responsible for basic services, infrastructure, planning, local economic development and other functions that directly affect daily life. The controversy over candidate lists may appear technical, but it can determine which political options appear on the ballot.
With the 4 November election approaching, the ANC’s court battle has become a test of more than a software deadline. It is a test of how South Africa’s electoral system balances strict administration with constitutional participation, and how political parties manage the increasingly demanding mechanics of modern elections. Whatever the Constitutional Court decides, the dispute has already become a defining moment in the 2026 local government campaign and another indication that South Africa’s political landscape is becoming more competitive, fragmented and unpredictable. The judgment could also shape future rules for electronic nominations by parties across South Africa.
