South Africa's political landscape is changing as established parties face growing pressure - EWN

South Africa's political landscape is entering a new phase, with established parties facing growing pressure, smaller political formations gaining ground and coalition politics becoming an increasingly important feature of local government.

Political analyst Dr Ongama Mtimka says the 2026 local government elections are highlighting changing voter behaviour, including growing disengagement among traditional ANC supporters and the emergence of parties that have broken away from established political formations.

Speaking to 702/CapeTalk on Thursday morning, as the counting of votes continued, Mtimka said voter turnout was proving particularly important for the country's biggest political parties.

Although the final turnout figures were not yet available, he pointed to an emerging pattern in which turnout appeared higher in Democratic Alliance strongholds, while areas traditionally associated with the ANC and other parties recorded slightly lower participation.