ANC can no longer expect an automatic mandate from voters, says Mbalula
ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has acknowledged that the party has lost some of the trust of voters and says it is working to rebuild that relationship ahead of the 2026 local government elections.
African National Congress (ANC) secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has acknowledged that the party can no longer take voters’ support for granted as it prepares for the 2026 local government elections.
Mbalula was speaking at the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in the Eastern Cape on Sunday.
He admitted that corruption and weak leadership had damaged the ANC’s relationship with communities, and said the party had taken the message from voters seriously.
“We know that in some places corruption and weak leadership have betrayed the trust of communities. In 2024/2025, only 15% of municipalities achieved clean audits," Mbalula said.
“The voters spoke to us in 2021; our share of the national municipal vote fell from 53.9% in 2016 to 45.59%.
Mbalula said the election results showed that South Africans were no longer willing to give the ANC an automatic mandate.
“We have heard that message, and we take it seriously,” he said.
He said the ANC’s renewal must be seen in the way the party and its councillors conduct themselves.
“Renewal in the ANC is not a slogan; it must be measured in conduct,” Mbalula said.
The party’s January 8 statement made it clear that renewal must be “visible and irreversible”.
As part of its plans, every ANC councillor would be required to sign a public performance agreement and a pledge of ethical conduct.
Mbalula said every ANC-led municipality would also have to publish a state-of-the-municipality report within 60 days.
The report would provide information on the municipality’s finances and service delivery.
"We will report to you publicly and regularly on what we have committed to, what we delivered and what remains undone. Why does this matter to the church? Because local government is where the gospel meets the street," Mbalula said.
