OPINION | The impact of new parties in the 2026 LGE

By Dr Levy Ndou

Democracy in South Africa is growing, and its strength is seen by all of us. It has grown to a stage where ordinary citizens have a basic understanding of elections and their importance. Through the efforts of the Independent Electoral Commission and the role that political parties play, ordinary citizens now understand the importance of participation and voting.

To a larger extent, citizens do understand the difference between local and general elections. Local government elections are meant for the municipality, while general elections are for the national and provincial government, respectively. The 2026 local government elections have over 500 political parties contesting the elections. It is an indication of a growing interest in representing and serving the people of South Africa by the different political parties, including independent candidates.

The focus of this discussion will be on the Umkhonto Wesizwe Party and the African Mayibuye Movement.

Umkhonto Wesizwe Party (MKP).

The MKP is a new party in the local government setup. They are contesting the local government elections for the first time now in 2026. The strong hold of the MKP is mainly in the KwaZulu-Natal province. Looking at the performance of the MKP in the 2024 general elections, it would be naïve to rule the MKP out this time. There have been a lot of activities by the MKP, which were mainly to showcase their support in these elections. The main focus of the MKP has always been the areas in KZN, and they are setting their sights on the eThekwini Metro.

The presence of the MKP in KZN has made the contestation in KZN interesting. They seem to be having a reasonable following and making it difficult for the traditional parties like the ANC, IFP and DA. The contestation in eThekwini is even more interesting with the GNU dynamics. The ANC, IFP and the DA are in the GNU, and they are also in the same arrangement in the KZN provincial government. The possibility in eThekwini is that we may not get an outright winner. If that is the case, a coalition government cannot be avoided.

Different scenarios could be at play in eThekwini:

1. eThekwini could adopt the GNU model, which they have used at national and provincial level. They might still need other smaller parties to collaborate with them.

2. The MKP could get other parties, including those that are in the GNU, to establish a coalition government.

3. Depending on the election results, the MKP could establish a government with other smaller parties.

4. Depending on the negotiations, the MKP could join the other parties in the GNU and be part of government.

It is important to note that every municipality has its own dynamics, and the approaches to establish a government could not be the same. We should therefore expect anything to happen.

Africa Mayibuye Movement.

Africa Mayibuye Movement is led by Floyd Shibambu, who is the former Secretary General of the MKP and Deputy President of the EFF. He is originally from the ANC and was a former spokesperson of the ANCYL. Africa Mayibuye is contesting elections in all the wards in South Africa. Their stronghold is in Limpopo in the Mopane District. Most of the energy of Mayibuye is in those districts.

The focus of Mayibuye is to win with a majority and be in control of the municipality. They are also aware that they could find themselves negotiating coalitions. They have made many efforts to ensure that they campaign in most areas in South Africa. The prospects of Africa Mayibuye winning a municipality with an outright majority could be slim. The possibility of getting representation is high. We should expect them to make a presence in the Vhembe and Mopani areas. Though they are new in this space, Mayibuye already has a plan for coalitions.

Their plan focuses on the following:

1. Mayibuye has emphasised working with all progressive black parties that are committed to the transformation of the economy.

2. The focus is on substantive developmental leadership where they will make an enormous impact on service delivery.

3. The creation of jobs through the revitalisation of industries

4. They believe in the abolition of the tender systems and the establishment of the local economic agency.

Scenarios for the Africa Mayibuye Movement.

1. The Africa Mayibuye Movement is gunning for an outright win, but they are open to collaborating with any black progressive party if they are faced with the possibility of a coalition government in South Africa.

2. They can be a central player in the coalition establishment and negotiate to get a substantive developmental leadership position.

3. They may become an opposition party while focusing on the growth of the party. That will give them an opportunity to gain experience and understand local government challenges from the opposition benches.

Dr Levy Ndou is a South African political analyst, academic, and lecturer.