No South African political party has had an easy time trying to crack the formula for attracting the best talent to run for office at municipal level.
For the ANC it has been a tumultuous road. In the aftermath of the messy 2011 local election, the party shifted its approach, to attract more community-orientated candidates than those selected solely by its branches.
Now, ahead of the 2026/2027 local election, it is once again mulling a greater say for branches.
The DA has historically cast its net wider than the party’s own ranks. Ahead of the upcoming election, it is stepping up its game to select the best talent to fill crucial councillor and mayoral candidate posts, having set itself the imposing target of winning over the electorate in Gauteng metros.
DA federal executive chair Helen Zille, who rose to prominence as the mayor of Cape Town and then cementing DA control over the metro and the Western Cape province, is running the party’s machinery to seek out candidates to roll up their sleeves and fix the country’s ailing cities and towns.
Zille knows what it takes to run messy coalitions such as those that have played such a large role in the decline of Joburg, the country’s economic pulse.
It would be good to have someone ... who is not fazed by harsh, often unjust, public criticism and is able to take on the corrupt cadres in government who will do their best to destabilise the coalition
— DA federal executive chair Helen Zille
“A backbone of steel” is a key requirement for someone to take on the daunting task of the city’s mayor, for instance, she says.
“It would be good to have a person with a strong and positive public profile, a track record in handling complex systems and the skills needed to manage fractious coalitions — someone with a backbone of steel who is not fazed by harsh, often unjust, public criticism, is able to take on the corrupt cadres in government who will do their best to destabilise the coalition, and has a family who can take the pressure as well,” Zille tells the FM.
“I know this is a tall order, but that is what we are looking for, both inside and outside the party.”
A tall order indeed.
Joburg, and most metros in the country except for Cape Town, are in dire need of an overhaul after successive elections, characterised by messy coalitions. Even before municipalities fully entered coalition terrain after 2016, policy missteps, corruption and poor governance placed basic service delivery across South African cities on the skids.
Business Day last week reported the findings of a study by researchers in urban economies Prof Ivan Turok and Justin Visagie that illustrated how the country’s metros are a drag on economic growth and urged rapid reform to boost employment and investment.
No other city illustrates the devastating impact of poor leadership as clearly as Joburg.
A coalition pact between the ANC and the EFF saw successive “puppet mayors”, to disastrous effect. Al Jama-ah’s Thapelo Amad was removed from the post after making claims about a potential R9.5bn loan from a private company for the city and his successor, Kabelo Gwamanda, is facing charges over a funeral policy scam he allegedly ran in 2012.
The city’s once cash-flush entities are limping. It owes Eskom more than R4.9bn, Joburg Water has a R27bn infrastructure and maintenance backlog and, according to reports, the Joburg Roads Agency needs R16bn to get the city’s bridges into shape as only 6% of its 902 bridges are in good condition.
To fix the mess that has come to characterise South African cities the DA is inviting all suitable South Africans, not limited to DA members, to throw their hats into the ring. It is a tall order, asking talented professionals with bright prospects in the private sector to enter the sludge pit characterising South African politics.
“Indeed, it is,” she says. “And yet we do find them, especially where we have a chance of winning and governing, either alone or in a coalition. Civic-minded engineers, for example, often love the prospect of becoming the member of the mayoral committee responsible for infrastructure and utility services,” Zille says.
At a federal executive committee meeting last weekend, the DA revised its councillor candidate nomination regulations, homing in on “specialised skills”.
A candidate with such skills usually receives an additional point in the screening assessment. Ahead of the 2026/2027 polls, the skills required will be tailored to meet the needs of the specific municipality the candidate wants to stand in. This will ensure that the DA caucus there is fully equipped for the challenges.
Because the DA has been burnt in the past when it catapulted new entrants into top posts, it is now making provision for building a pipeline of talent. A “catalyst programme” has been introduced for the first time, and 77 participants have already enrolled.
“It is designed to draw new talent into the DA’s candidate selection process and equip the potential candidates with the skills and knowledge to make them competitive in the final interviews and tests. It is also a good opportunity for them to work out whether they actually want to enter politics. We do not sugar-coat the pill,” Zille says.
However, a bitter pill for the DA is the fragmentation of the opposition vote by smaller parties that have a strong local presence and often hold the balance of power in a council.
The party has been consistent in its messaging that smaller parties erode the capacity for real political change, particularly at local level. The DA’s support was on a steady upward trajectory from 2011, when it increased its share of the vote from 28% in 2006 to 35%. It went on to grow to 38% in 2016, but regressed in 2021 to 26%.
By a myriad smaller parties splitting the DA vote, they almost guarantee that the ANC will win
— DA federal executive chair Helen Zille
“By a myriad smaller parties splitting the DA vote, they almost guarantee that the ANC will win,” she says.
“We would have been the same size, if not slightly bigger, than the ANC [in Gauteng in 2024]. That would have made an enormous difference. Instead, voters for small parties actually unintentionally put Panyaza Lesufi back in power. By now I hope voters are beginning to learn harsh lessons.
“We will keep reminding them that, while the DA is not perfect, it is the only party that has a chance of rescuing the Gauteng metros,” Zille says.
Aside from candidates, there is another important factor that could shape the DA’s fortunes in the local election — its participation in the GNU. If this arrangement makes its mark nationally it could give the DA the upper hand.
“We obviously can’t get everything we want. If people expect us to do that, they must give us more votes. But at least there must be a discernible effect, especially in the economy.”
It won’t be easy, with the GNU still in its infancy. But the party’s campaign can only benefit from fresh talent being placed before a weary electorate.
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