CAPE TOWN, Western Cape — As South Africa braces for the critical 2026 municipal elections, the Democratic Alliance is deploying a targeted strategy to defend its local governance record while actively working to shed historical perceptions that have long hindered its broader national appeal. According to Jonathan Moakes, political director at the SABI Strategy Group and former DA CEO, the party is heading into the November 4 polls with a high degree of confidence, banking on verifiable service delivery metrics to win over an increasingly apathetic electorate.
The political battleground for local control is set against a backdrop of severe national infrastructure strain. President Cyril Ramaphosa recently cautioned delegates at the National Local Economic Development Summit that widespread municipal collapse is stifling South Africa’s economic growth. Highlighting a severe maintenance backlog, Ramaphosa noted that many local governments allocate less than 1% of their budgets to infrastructure upkeep, falling drastically short of the required 8% benchmark.
Rather than being defensive about the national crisis, the DA views the President’s statements as a strategic campaigning opportunity. Moakes notes that the party intends to contrast its own operational stability with the national decline, specifically leveraging comments Ramaphosa reportedly made during an internal ANC meeting, where he urged his own party to replicate the governance successes achieved by the DA.
Audits, Affluence, and the “Two-Tier” Criticism
To validate its governance across the 31 municipalities it manages—stretching from the City of Cape Town to various regions in KwaZulu-Natal—the DA relies heavily on the objective data provided by the Auditor-General (AG).
However, the party frequently faces criticism suggesting its success is merely the byproduct of governing affluent areas with robust ratepayer bases, leading to accusations of a “two-tier” service delivery model. Moakes dismisses this as a flawed narrative, pointing out that AG audits evaluate operational efficiency, financial management, and clean governance, regardless of a municipality’s total budget size. Furthermore, he emphasizes that the DA’s footprint includes numerous lower-income and rural municipalities with significantly smaller revenue streams, which are still managed with greater transparency than those under rival political control.
When pressed on systemic service delivery failures in historically marginalized townships, Moakes acknowledged the heavy scrutiny placed on the City of Cape Town by the Public Protector and the landmark Tafelberg judgment regarding spatial justice. He clarified that the Public Protector’s findings regarding areas like Langa and Khayelitsha were largely based on complaints filed between 2021 and 2022, and noted that the city has since implemented remedial actions.
Broadening the context, Moakes argued that the inability to dismantle the economic legacies of apartheid remains a failure across all three tiers of government nationwide. To illustrate that spatial inequality is not unique to the Western Cape, he pointed to the stark economic disparities visible just a ten-minute drive apart between Sandton and Alexandra in Gauteng.
The “Albatross” of Public Perception
Historically, the DA has struggled with a public image that critics label as “anti-poor” or unrepresentative of black South Africans. Moakes candidly describes this perception as the “biggest albatross” around the party’s neck. To overcome this hurdle ahead of the 2026 municipal elections, he advises a strict pivot away from national ideological debates, urging the party to focus entirely on the tangible, day-to-day realities of local governance.
“Ultimately, it comes down to service delivery,” Moakes explained, citing basic metrics such as functional traffic lights, timely refuse collection, filled potholes, and reliable water pressure. He also highlighted the importance of a “business-style” administrative approach, which has allowed well-run DA municipalities to maintain zero debt with crucial entities like Eskom and regional water boards, while ensuring civil servants are paid on time.
Because local elections differ fundamentally from general national elections, Moakes stresses that political messaging must be simplified. Acknowledging that the vast majority of voters do not read lengthy political manifestos, he suggests that parties must condense their platforms into a single, highly effective page that aligns directly with the lived experiences of residents regarding water, electricity, and anti-corruption measures.
Combating Voter Apathy
The urgency of this strategic pivot is underscored by troubling voter registration figures from recent weekends, which indicate deep public apathy and historically low trust in politicians.
For citizens attempting to decipher political messaging ahead of the November 4 deadline, Moakes offers a straightforward rubric for assessment. He urges voters to bypass political rhetoric and instead evaluate candidates based on three core pillars: a proven track record of delivery, administrative competence in managing large municipal budgets, and a commitment to transparent, ongoing communication with residents during both crises and periods of stability.
