South Africa's ANC and DA Nearly Tied as Municipal Vote Count Reaches 18%

South Africa's African National Congress (ANC) and Democratic Alliance (DA) were separated by just 10,627 votes in an early snapshot of the 4 November municipal election count, a much broader picture than the first declared ward result reported overnight. The figures are provisional, and neither the national share nor an early council lead establishes who will govern a municipality.

At 08:01 South African time on Thursday, 5 November 2026, The South African reported from the Electoral Commission's results dashboard that the ANC had 1,039,116 votes, or 31.36%, and the DA 1,028,489, or 31.04%, with 18% counted. That is a 0.32-percentage-point gap in that specific snapshot, not a final election margin. The tally is changing as districts submit results.

Earlier on Thursday, SABC reported that more than 5% of votes had been counted, with the ANC having secured 19 early ward seats, the DA seven, the Patriotic Alliance four, ActionSA one and MKP one. SABC's figures describe an earlier stage of the same count; they are not final totals and must not be added to the later national vote snapshot.

This is a material update to TFNOS's earlier report on the first declared ward, which documented the ANC's victory in Kamiesberg Ward 3 in Northern Cape. Since that first result, many more districts have reported and the provisional national gap between the two largest parties has narrowed to less than one percentage point in the cited 08:01 snapshot.

Municipal voters elect local councils, not a single national government. The national percentage therefore cannot by itself determine control of Johannesburg, Cape Town, eThekwini or other councils. Final seats, recounts, objections and coalition negotiations remain outstanding. A narrow national lead is not evidence of ballot manipulation or a prediction of a final majority.

TFNOS will follow official Electoral Commission declarations, any corrected figures and formal objections. A further article is warranted only if a substantive new result, ruling or coalition decision is independently verified.