The run-up to South Africa’s 2026 local government elections is seeing a notable flow of candidates between parties, a trend an independent election analyst described on CapeTalk as "sizeable" and potentially consequential for municipal politics.
Who is moving where?
Michael Atkins, speaking on CapeTalk, said about 10% of candidates standing in the local government polls have at some point represented a different party. He characterised the movement as "noticeable" though not dominant across the entire candidate pool.
According to the figures discussed on the programme, the African National Congress (ANC) has experienced the largest net loss of candidates, with 362 members having left to stand elsewhere. The South African Communist Party (SACP), contesting municipal elections independently for the first time, has drawn heavily from the ANC: Atkins said the SACP’s slate includes almost 400 people who previously stood for the ANC.
“It’s sizeable. It’s a noticeable number. But it’s not the vast majority of candidates,”
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has also seen considerable shifts. Presenter Lester Kiewit noted the party lost 258 candidates but attracted 237 from other parties, leaving a near-flat net change of minus 21.
Some of the movements involve surprising transfers between parties with different ideological histories: 23 current candidates for MK are reported to have previously stood for the DA; 4 Freedom Front Plus (FF+) candidates once contested under the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) banner; and 2 Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) candidates had earlier been linked to the FF+.
Why the churn matters
The turnover of candidates raises questions about party identity, voter clarity and the mechanics of coalition-building at municipal level. Atkins cautioned against reading the movement as uniformly unhealthy: in his view, switching may reflect changing perceptions of parties, personal political recalibration, or strategic positioning ahead of a competitive set of local polls.
Practical consequences follow from these shifts. Municipal councils are frequently decided by narrow margins; the arrival or departure of experienced ward candidates can affect a party’s local organisational capacity, ward-level campaigning and the bargaining chips available during post-election coalition negotiations. Changes in candidate lists may also influence voter perceptions of party stability and credibility.
- ANC: net loss of 362 candidates.
- SACP: almost 400 candidates have previously stood for the ANC.
- DA: lost 258, attracted 237 (net -21).
Smaller, targeted movements — such as former DA figures appearing on MK lists, and EFF-aligned candidates moving to the FF+ — demonstrate that candidate migration is not confined to ideologically proximate parties. That complicates simple narratives that portray local politics as a matter of left-versus-right realignment.
| Party | Notable movement |
|---|---|
| ANC | Loss of 362 candidates |
| SACP | Almost 400 candidates previously stood for ANC |
| DA | Lost 258, attracted 237 (net -21) |
| MK / FF+ / IFP | Individual crossovers: 23, 4, 2 respectively |
Who benefits and who pays
Parties that attract experienced candidates may gain from improved campaign capacity and local name recognition. The SACP, contesting separately for the first time, appears to have benefited numerically from its ANC origins. Conversely, parties losing seasoned candidates risk gaps in ground operations and weakened wards.
Voters pay the price if candidate-switching produces confusion about policy commitments or results in opportunistic local alliances after the vote. For parties, the short-term gain of recruiting an established local figure must be balanced against longer-term questions of loyalty and coherence.
Atkins emphasised that while the churn is meaningful relative to the total candidate pool, it does not amount to a wholesale collapse of party structures. It does, however, add another layer to the horse-trading that characterises South Africa’s increasingly fragmented municipal politics, and will be a factor to watch as campaign season intensifies.
As lists are finalised and ballot papers printed, the movements documented on CapeTalk provide an early snapshot of a field in flux — one that will influence seat tallies, coalition arithmetic and the practical delivery of services in councils across the country.
