JOHANNESBURG, Gauteng — The African National Congress (ANC) has unexpectedly delayed the official announcement of its mayoral candidates until September, a strategic shift that political analysts warn is a clear indicator of internal crisis management ahead of the November 4 local government elections. Despite prior communications indicating that nominees for eight metropolitan areas and 44 district municipalities would be unveiled this past Saturday at the Sandton Convention Centre, the party only released a preliminary shortlist, raising immediate questions about its organizational cohesion.
President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the preliminary list, reminding voters of the historical significance of the democratic franchise and urging citizens not to take their voting rights for granted. While highlighting the ANC’s 30-year legacy of providing basic utilities like water and electricity, Ramaphosa also candidly admitted that the party must take ownership of current service delivery failures, including crumbling infrastructure, potholes, and persistent water shortages.
Political analyst Brutus Malada described the delayed reveal as a “damp squib” and a transparent crisis management tactic. He pointed to the lack of a standardized nomination process as a major red flag. For instance, while one Free State municipality yielded eight shortlisted nominees, the City of Johannesburg produced only three. Malada argued this discrepancy suggests the ANC is concealing internal factional battles and fears that marginalized candidates might sabotage the election campaign. He echoed the 2016 Tshwane scenario, where the imposition of Thoko Didiza as a candidate was met with fierce local resistance and rejection by the party’s own grassroots structures.
The preliminary list has already ignited intense political speculation. In the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality, the inclusion of Andile Lungisa—a figure known for his past public opposition to President Ramaphosa’s leadership—stands out as highly controversial. In the King Sabata Dalindyebo municipality, Mandla Mandela is among a trio of nominees. Meanwhile, Frank Chikane’s name surfaced for the City of Johannesburg, despite earlier rumors suggesting he might withdraw from the race entirely. Additionally, Soviet Lekganyane, the ANC’s former provincial secretary and current chairperson of a parliamentary ad hoc committee, was named as a candidate for the City of Polokwane.
Malada stressed that this delay severely handicaps the ANC’s electoral prospects. Rival political machines are already operating at full capacity. In Johannesburg, the Democratic Alliance has mobilized behind Helen Zille, ActionSA is rallying around Herman Mashaba, and Rise Mzansi is actively campaigning with Mmusi Maimane. “The earliest bird catches the fattest worm,” Malada observed, noting that a September reveal leaves the eventual ANC standard-bearer with minimal time to internalize the campaign, build voter confidence, and counter established rival narratives.
A glaring omission from the Sandton event was any explanation of how the final candidate will be chosen from the shortlist, or how local communities will be integrated into the selection process. This lack of transparency deepens the existing trust deficit between the ruling party and the electorate.
Malada also highlighted the ANC’s pattern of making grand declarations without follow-through. He referenced a major Nasrec gathering last September, where the party promised comprehensive, quarterly progress reports on municipal infrastructure and water delivery—a commitment that has since gone silent. Similarly, the national monitoring and evaluation department has produced no visible accountability reports to hold local executives responsible. The upcoming manifesto launch in Diepsloot was dismissed by the analyst as a symbolic gesture designed to offer “false hope” to a struggling community, rather than a genuine commitment to long-term prioritization.
Finally, Malada pushed back against narratives that unfairly blame the ANC for failures in current coalition governments. He emphasized that the ANC dominated these municipalities for years prior to the 2016 coalition era. He pointed to the rapid turnover of mayors in Johannesburg—many of whom were ANC appointees installed with the party’s backing—as proof of the ruling party’s role in fostering local instability. Furthermore, he noted that the current ActionSA administration in Tshwane exists only because of a support agreement with the ANC, meaning the ruling party remains complicit in both the successes and the failures of those coalition arrangements.
