Pretoria: Over 140,000 candidates have submitted nominations for the upcoming 2026 Local Government Elections in South Africa, marking a significant increase compared to previous elections. The Electoral Commission (IEC) announced that 142,072 candidates are set to contest 10,526 council seats, indicating a rise in political engagement across the nation.
According to South African Government News Agency, Commission Chairperson Mosotho Moepya addressed the media, revealing that the nominations were closed on Friday, 28 August 2026, at 5 pm. Moepya outlined the next steps for the IEC, which include verifying compliance with legislative requirements for candidate nominations. This process involves ensuring that candidates have completed necessary forms, political parties and independent candidates have paid required deposits, and independent candidates have submitted supporting voter details.
Preliminary figures from the Commission show 299 political parties and 127 independent candidates submitted nominations via the Online Candidate Nomination System (OCNS), while an additional 205 parties and 634 independent candidates opted for manual submissions. Of the total candidates, 40,241 are vying for Proportional Representation (PR) seats, while 100,856 aim for ward seats. Additionally, 975 independent candidates are competing for ward positions.
The dramatic increase in nominations-approximately 43% more than the 99,000 nominations in the 2021 elections-reflects heightened interest in local governance. Notably, candidates aged 36 to 55 represent the majority, with men comprising nearly two-thirds of the candidates. In PR lists, men account for 56%, while they make up 65% in ward elections.
The City of Johannesburg leads in the number of PR contestants, followed by Tshwane, eThekwini, Ekurhuleni, and Cape Town. Other municipalities with significant party participation include Emfuleni, Polokwane, Rustenburg, Nelson Mandela Bay, and Capricorn District.
Despite the enthusiasm, 2,274 candidate names were entered but not finalized on the OCNS by the deadline, affecting 480 potential PR candidates and 1,794 potential ward candidates linked to 45 parties. Moepya clarified that these candidates are not eligible for the election due to incomplete submissions.
Political party participation remains robust, with 66% of national, 92% of provincial, 80% of metropolitan, and 82% of district-level registered parties nominating candidates. The IEC will now focus on verifying nominations and will release the final candidate lists on 16 September 2026. Moepya concluded by commending the participants and reminding them of their legal obligations under the Electoral Code of Conduct.
