By JOHANNESBURG — In a crucial legal and political victory for the ruling African National Congress (ANC), South Africa’s Constitutional Court has upheld the party’s appeal against the Electoral Commission (IEC), clearing the way for ANC candidates to contest key municipal seats in the upcoming 4 November 2026 local government elections.
The apex court’s majority decision sets aside a previous Electoral Court ruling that had barred the governing party from submitting candidate lists and ward nominations in several key municipalities.
A Split Bench Grants Leave to Appeal
The case (Case CCT 282/26) brought the ANC directly against the Electoral Commission of South Africa as the first respondent and the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) as the second respondent.
In an order issued on Thursday, 15 October 2026, the court panel—led by Deputy Acting Chief Justice Mlambo along with Justices Dambuza, Mathopo, Mhlantla, Theron, and Acting Justices Basson, Le Grange, Nuku, and Savage—granted the ANC leave to appeal directly to the Constitutional Court.
The court also granted condonation for the IEC’s late filing of its answering affidavit, noting that “the delay in filing the answering affidavit is minimal, the explanation for the delay is adequate and there is no prejudice to the applicant”.
By majority, the bench ruled in favour of the ANC, though Acting Justices Basson and Savage dissented, noting they would have dismissed the appeal.
Key Municipalities Back on the Ballot
The order directly addresses the IEC’s previous refusal to accept ANC candidate nominations in six crucial municipal jurisdictions across the country. Under section 4.1 and 4.2 of the judgment, the Electoral Commission has been ordered to immediately restore the party’s candidate submissions onto official ballot papers and administrative systems ahead of the November poll.
The municipalities affected by the ruling include:
- Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality (MAN) in the Free State
- Sundays River Valley Local Municipality (EC106)
- Walter Sisulu Local Municipality (EC145)
- Ngquza Hill Local Municipality (EC153)
- Port St Johns Local Municipality (EC154) in the Eastern Cape
- uMshwathi Local Municipality (KZN221) in KwaZulu-Natal
High Stakes Ahead of November 4
The ruling removes a massive administrative roadblock for the ANC, which faced the severe prospect of losing governance or major representation across several key strongholds and metropolitan areas due to missed deadline technicalities.
The court noted that costs remain reserved, and detailed written reasons for the majority judgment will be delivered at a later date. With less than three weeks remaining before voters head to the polls on 4 November 2026, the IEC must now swiftly adjust its ballot printing and logistics operations to reflect the restored candidate lists.
