Wednesday 4 November 2026 · Updated 06:25
ANALYSISElections

Emfuleni elections 2026: the Sebokeng wards to watch

The ANC won every Sebokeng ward in 2021, but with a smaller share than in 2016 in almost all of them. Here are the closest wards, where the smaller parties did best, and who is standing.

By Staff Reporter · Published

A blue IEC 'Voting station' sign with an arrow, tied to a red fence
File photo: an IEC voting station sign during the 2026 voter registration weekend (June 2026). Illustrative. Photo: KeMang / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.

Figures are as at 3 November 2026. Ward results are official IEC figures from the 2021 local government elections unless stated.

Sebokeng votes on Wednesday 4 November 2026, from 07:00 to 21:00.1 The ANC won all 15 Sebokeng wards in 2021, but its share was lower than in 2016 in 14 of them. The EFF came second in ten.2 This piece is part of our guide to the Emfuleni wards to watch.

This story will be updated as IEC results come in.

Ward numbers are the 2021 wards; some have been redrawn for 2026.3

Swing: the closest Sebokeng wards

  • Ward 31 (Zones 10 and 14): the ANC won with 35.7%, against 26.6% for the EFF and 25.6% for the DA. The margin was 300 votes. In 2016 the ANC took 60.8%.4,5
  • Ward 17 (hostels, Zones 17 and 20, Golden Gardens): the ANC won with 48.0%, against 37.8% for the EFF, a margin of 375 votes. In 2016 the ANC took 68.9%.6,7
  • Ward 33 (Zones 12 and 13, Kanana): the ANC won with 42.8%, against 26.0% for the EFF, a margin of 525 votes.8
  • Ward 39 (Eatonside, Zone 7): the ANC won with 47.0%. The PAC came second with 26.7%, the only ward in Emfuleni where it finished in the top two. The margin was 441 votes.9

Slipping: Wards 35 and 18

  • Ward 35 (Zones 11, 12 and 13): the ANC won 54.10% in 2021. It held the ward in a by-election in July 2025 with 37.71%, on a 36.97% turnout.10 MK came second with about 21%, while the DA and the Patriotic Alliance took about 12% each.11
  • Ward 18 (Kanana, Evaton Small Farms): the ANC’s share fell from 79.3% in 2016 to 47.8% in 2021. The EFF took 20.3% and the DA 19.0%, on a turnout of 37.5%.12,13

Other ANC-held wards

The ANC won Wards 27, 30, 32, 34, 36, 37 and 38 with between 50.8% and 55.8%. It won Wards 2, 40 and 41 with less than 50%. Turnout in these ten wards ranged from 37.6% to 46.7%.2 Ward 37 is held by the executive mayor, Hassan Mako.14,15

Next door, in Evaton West, the DA won the Ward 28 by-election in May 2026 by eight votes, with 32.08% to the ANC’s 31.83%.16,17

Key points: smaller parties in Sebokeng
  • Only the ANC and the DA won wards in 2021. All other parties’ council seats are PR seats.18
  • EFF: second in ten Sebokeng wards. Its best result was 37.8% in Ward 17, followed by 26.6% in Ward 31 and 26.0% in Ward 33.6,4,8
  • PAC: second in Ward 39 with 26.7%. It took 4.9% in Ward 32.9,19
  • Community Solidarity Association: 7.9% in Ward 27, its best ward in Emfuleni, and 12.1% of the PR vote there. It is not on the 2026 Emfuleni candidate list.20,21
  • ACDP: 2.5% in Ward 40 and 2.3% in Ward 34.22,23
  • Vaal Alternative Alliance Lekgotla: 2.2% in Ward 41 and 2.1% in Ward 37.24,25
  • MK: about 21% and second place in the Ward 35 by-election. It did not stand in the Ward 28 by-election.11,17
  • Patriotic Alliance: about 12% in Ward 35 in 2025 and about 8% in Ward 28 in 2026.11,17
  • The SACP took about 3% in the Ward 28 by-election.17 ActionSA did not stand in either by-election.11,17

Who represents these wards

The table names the councillor holding each ward now, and whether that person appears on the IEC’s certified 2026 candidate list for Emfuleni.21

Ward (2021) Councillor now Party On the 2026 Emfuleni list?
31 Sibongile Judith Naapo ANC Yes: ANC candidate, Ward 31
17 M Sikukula ANC Not on the 2026 lists
33 MA Dondolo ANC Not on the 2026 lists
39 Andries Saba Lekeletsane Elected for the ANC in 2021 Yes: SACP candidate, Ward 39
35 Chakane Petrus Mohlamme ANC Yes: ANC candidate, Ward 35
18 Thandi Maria Khoza ANC Yes: ANC candidate, Ward 18; ANC PR list no. 20
37 Hassan Mosola Mako ANC Yes: ANC candidate, Ward 37
28 Maki Emily Tshabalala DA Yes: DA candidate, Ward 28; DA PR list no. 25

Names are from the 2025/26 IDP, IEC by-election results and the IEC list. Where only initials are confirmed, we give initials.14,10,16,21 We searched the IEC’s certified 2026 candidate lists for all provinces by surname and found no entry for the councillors marked “not on the 2026 lists”.26

Main candidates in the closest wards (parties with seats on the outgoing council, plus the sitting councillor):21

  • Ward 31 (37 candidates): ANC Sibongile Judith Naapo; DA Thabiso Moeletsi Lehoko; EFF Boitumelo Portia Thomas; FF Plus Adriaan Izak Meyer; PAC Mpho Eddie Solundwana; Patriotic Alliance Ramoyatseleng Solomon More.
  • Ward 17 (32 candidates): ANC Anezwa Pikoko; DA Philda Mbolekwa; EFF Ncomeka Prudence Xhonywa; FF Plus Pieter Smith; PAC Puseletso Patricia Moahloli.
  • Ward 39 (31 candidates): ANC Harry Fox; DA Motlalepula Simon Tsotetsi; EFF Sipho Stanley Mokoena; FF Plus Wilhelmina Jacoba van Niekerk; PAC Phillemon Fano Mokhele; Patriotic Alliance Grace Mantoa Mkhwanazi; SACP Andries Saba Lekeletsane.

The 2026 Ward 39 is made up of parts of the old Wards 39 and 21.3 Some candidates are listed by the IEC in more than one ward.21

In this series

This story will be updated as IEC results come in.

Sources
  1. 2026 Local Government Elections timetable, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  2. Municipal election results downloads (ward results summaries, Emfuleni wards 1–45, LGE 2016 and 2021), Electoral Commission of South Africa
  3. Emfuleni 2026 wards, with overlaps to 2021 wards (Municipal Demarcation Board and IEC boundaries), ESP
  4. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 31, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  5. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 31, LGE 2016, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  6. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 17, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  7. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 17, LGE 2016, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  8. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 33, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  9. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 39, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  10. Results of municipal by-elections held on 23 July 2025, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  11. ANC narrowly retains Emfuleni’s Ward 35 in closely contested by-election, Vaalweekblad (24 July 2025)
  12. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 18, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  13. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 18, LGE 2016, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  14. IDP Executive Summary 2025/26 (councillors 2021–2026), Emfuleni Local Municipality (June 2025)
  15. Mako elected ELM mayor, Sedibeng Ster (10 June 2026)
  16. Results of municipal by-elections held on 27 May 2026, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  17. DA makes history with first Gauteng township ward victory in Evaton West, Daily Maverick (28 May 2026)
  18. Seat calculation detail, Emfuleni, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  19. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 32, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  20. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 27, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  21. Certified list of candidates as supplemented, LGE 2026, Gauteng (GT421 Emfuleni entries), Electoral Commission of South Africa (23 October 2026)
  22. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 40, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  23. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 34, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  24. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 41, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  25. Results summary, Emfuleni Ward 37, LGE 2021, Electoral Commission of South Africa
  26. Certified list of candidates as supplemented, LGE 2026, all provinces, Electoral Commission of South Africa (23 October 2026)

Forecasts mentioned

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