There has been growing discontent with many local authorities and calls by concerned citizens for the municipalities to be dissolved.
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Articles on Municipal elections
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Local government elections in South Africa have traditionally been characterised by low voter turnout.
The bigger parties which contest elections at all three levels would benefit the most – but voters might split their votes.
Citizens have been denied their right to elect officials at the grassroots and this has allowed the central government to maintain rigid control of the country’s regions.
Brexit has particular significance for the 757 British citizens currently elected in France, whose mandates expire at the upcoming mayoral elections in March.
South African parties are recognising that coalition politics is now part of the political landscape and is here to stay.
Are different ways of governing emerging from South Africa’s cities governed by opposition coalitions?
After two decades of political dominance, the electoral performance of the ANC is at its lowest since it became the governing party of South Africa in 1994. But is the party really unraveling?
Famously freewheeling – but also violent and unequal – Rio de Janeiro has elected a right-wing former pentecostal bishop as mayor. What’s at stake for this ‘gay, black and tolerant’ Brazilian city?
The EFF is sending a strong message to South Africans that it wants to be known as the only political home for radical change.
Many municipalities in the South Africa don’t function properly because of poor management and administrative capacity. They don’t have enough appropriately qualified and experienced staff.
Patronage and clientelism is slipping away from the ANC and accruing to those who pledge their political futures to the Democratic Alliance. It will have to guard against incumbency arrogance.
The ruling ANC has been seriously challenged by the Democratic Alliance, but South African politics is still about white privilege and black exclusion.
South Africa’s university students have shown that they can have an impact on the political landscape. That’s why it’s so important that they exercise their right to vote.
The increase in rioting ahead of municipal elections in South Africa, such as that in Pretoria, suggests that the country’s general election in 2019 could be more violent than previous elections.
The brouhaha over South Africa’s upcoming high-stakes municipal elections hides critically important questions about the continued relevance of local government amid growing public disaffection.
Understandable anger about the excessive inequality in South Africa lies at the heart of the rise of the radical Economic Freedom Fighters. The problem is how the party wants to address these issues.
A key question ahead of local government elections in South Africa is whether the African National Congress will retain control of seven of the country’s eight metropolitan municipalities.
It is unlikely President Zuma will announce a structural changes in his State of the Nation Address. This, despite education being in dire need of fundamental restructuring and an economy in decline.
The general loss of faith in the economy is the most important issue President Zuma must address. More radical social and economic transformation, with emphasis on land reform will be most critical.
Top contributors
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Professor in Political Science, University of South Africa
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Political Scientist, University of the Western Cape
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Professor of Public Affairs, Tshwane University of Technology
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Senior Lecturer in Politics and International Studies, University of Westminster
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Professor, University of the Western Cape
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Associate Professor in Public Law, University of Cape Town
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Research Director, North-West University
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Associate Professor, UCT School of Economics; South African Reserve Bank Research Chair in Financial Stability Studies, University of Cape Town
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Senior Research Specialist, Innovations for Successful Societies, Princeton University
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Lecturer, Nelson Mandela University
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Director: Dullah Omar Institute, University of the Western Cape
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Senior Lecturer in French Politics & Contemporary European Studies, University of Sussex
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Professor of Urban Governance, University of the Witwatersrand
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Extraordinary Senior Lecturer at the School of Public Leadership, Stellenbosch University
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Coordinator, Center for Studies on Public Security and Citizenship (CESeC), Universidade Candido Mendes
