Political parties resist pre-election coalition talks amid service delivery concerns - IOL

The DA, MK Party and ActionSA say they will wait for the 4 November local election results before discussing coalitions, while an analyst warns that delays could hamper municipal decision-making and service delivery.

Political parties are refusing to discuss coalition deals before South Africa’s November 4 local government elections, despite warnings that protracted negotiations could delay municipal decision-making and disrupt service delivery.

In contrast, University of KwaZulu-Natal political analyst Zakhele Ndlovu suggested that the parties start negotiations before the elections to avoid compromising service delivery by doing so after the results are released.   

DA, uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) and ActionSA said the election results will determine negotiations. 

Mkhuseli Mlengane, MKP KZN spokesperson, said his party has not yet discussed coalition negotiations.  

“We have no intention of doing so anytime soon as our primary focus is on campaigns and ensuring we secure a decisive victory,” said Mlengane.

DA spokesperson Karabo Khakhau said her party would also not negotiate without first knowing the results.

“Once we know the outcome, we will then go to negotiations,” she said.

KwaZulu-Natal ActionSA leader Zwakele Mncwango said his party has also not yet considered the negotiations.

“We won’t discuss anything before the elections,” said Mncwango.

Mncwango believes that all municipalities might be governed through coalition.

“We must face the real­ity of South African polit­ics: we have entered a phase of coali­tion arrange­ments, which is what voters want, as they have moved away from one-party major­ity. I don't see MKP get­ting 50% plus one, but I see pos­sible coali­tion arrange­ments,” said Mncwango.

ANC and IFP have not responded to requests for comment, while EFF spokespersons were busy with its KwaZulu-Natal manifesto launch addressed by its president Julius Malema in Kokstad yesterday. 

Ndlovu gave the advice after Ipsos’s latest poll indicated that no party is likely to govern alone in the metros, except in eThekwini. 

According to a recent Ipsos Khayabus “Pulse of the People” study, key metros remain battlegrounds ahead of the Local Government Elections, and its research suggested that electoral outcomes “remain far from settled... with significant numbers of registered voters still available to be persuaded.” 

Ipsos, which surveyed 3 600 people across the country through random interviews between June and July, released a statement on September 4 indicating that the parties will have to form coalition partnerships. 

The mul­tina­tional mar­ket research and con­sult­ing firm said only eThekwini Metro might be governed by the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP), which is likely to get 55% of the vote, and govern without a coalition. 

According to the study findings, the ANC is showing signs of losing more support.

The findings stated that the ANC might receive less support than the DA in Tshwane, Buffalo City and Mangaung. 

Ipsos said the ANC still enjoys strong support in Limpopo and the Eastern Cape, while the DA remains dominant in the Western Cape.

Ndlovu said that although polls are not always accur­ate, there is a chance that the survey is correct. 

Ndlovu doubts that the MKP would participate in the pre-election negotiations in eThekwini, where it is confident of securing the outright majority.

He said coalitions are likely to become a permanent feature of the country, as this trend started in several municipalities and escalated to the national level in 2024, leading to the formation of the Government of National Unity and KwaZulu-Natal’s Government of Provincial Unity.

“With the ANC losing more and more support, it may very well be that it becomes a permanent feature,” said Ndlovu.

He said the parties that might negotiate because of their commonalities are EFF and MKP. 

On the other hand, he said the DA, IFP and ActionSA might easily reach out to each other.