South Africans boycott Nov 4 elections over 20 years without electricity
Residents of Katlehong township near Johannesburg are threatening to boycott South Africa's November 4 municipal elections after two decades without legal electricity. About 180 households have relied on illegal connections, tapping power from neighbouring areas. Community leader Lesiba Rankapole declared "no electricity, no vote" — a sentiment echoing across townships where water shortages, uncollected garbage, and sewage problems fuel anger at the ruling ANC.
The ANC, which won nearly 70% nationally in 2004, dropped to 46% in 2021 municipal polls and just over 40% in the 2024 national vote, forcing a coalition government. Former president Jacob Zuma's new MKP is contesting local elections for the first time, further fragmenting the vote. Johannesburg — Africa's economic hub with 4.8 million people — is the key battleground, where the DA campaigns on service delivery failures and the ANC has yet to name a mayoral candidate two weeks before polling.
Political analyst Sethulego Matebesi predicts no outright majorities, pushing South Africa into coalition governance. For Nigeria, this signals a continental trend: liberation parties losing legitimacy when basic services fail. The ANC's decline mirrors challenges facing dominant parties across Africa — including Nigeria's APC and PDP — when infrastructure promises remain unmet for decades.
As South Africa heads toward hung municipalities and coalition complexity, the question for Nigerian observers: how long before service delivery protests translate into electoral consequences at home?