Voter registration weekend is set for 20 and 21 June with some parties already in full campaign mode.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced the date for the 2026 local government elections in South Africa.
Speaking to the media outside the President’s Coordinating Council meeting in Boksburg on Thursday, Ramaphosa confirmed South Africans will go to the polls on 4 November.
Voter registration weekend is set for 20 and 21 June, with more than 200 000 new voters having registered online since November 2025.
“The people of South Africa will determine how they want to vote and who they want to vote for.
“All we have to do is respect the will of our people. Once our people have decided, we abide, and we continue serving them,” said Ramaphosa.
‘Status of our democracy’
A two-part report released by the Election Reform Consultation Panel this week showed that voter apathy was at an all-time high.
The report stated that only 31% voters believed the current system truly reflected the will of the voters, and that 53% of South Africans believed it didn’t matter what electoral system was used.
Ramaphosa felt the variety of existing media and communications channels would be adequate in relaying the importance of South Africans expressing themselves via the ballot box.
“Many parties are already ensuring that they talk to their voters, their supporters, and getting voters to be registered, to come forward to vote.
“Voter turnout is always a concern to political parties and indeed to the state, because the less people who vote, the more we get concerned about the status of our democracy.
“Our task is to increase voter turnout to get as many people as possible, especially young people to come out and register and vote,” the president stated.
Municipal reform
Ramaphosa had just concluded his address at the PCC where he emphasised the importance of addressing service delivery failures.
He said a new white paper on municipal governance was being finalised, which would aid the National Water Resource Infrastructure Agency Act in addressing the water crisis.
“We are clear that resolving this crisis requires a collaborative and coordinated response across all three spheres of government, working together with all social partners and communities.
“[This] will reimagine the way local government works, addressing the systemic challenges in the structure and functioning of local government,” said Ramaphosa.
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