South African coalition government faces fresh rift
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The governing partners have clashed over land expropriation, health insurance, and proposed tax increases
South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC) has called for the Democratic Alliance’s place in the coalition government to be reviewed after its governing partner opposed its court bid to reinstate barred election candidates.
Mbalula has urged ANC leaders and other Government of National Unity (GNU) partners to reconsider the DA’s place in government, opening a new front in a partnership repeatedly tested by political and policy disagreements. The GNU is made up of 10 political parties.
The latest dispute centres on the ANC’s legal challenge over the exclusion of its candidates from six municipalities ahead of the November 4, 2026, local government election. The party approached the Constitutional Court after its failure to finalise candidate submissions before the deadline left candidates off the ballot.
The DA opposed the ANC’s challenge, putting the coalition partners on opposing sides of a legal battle with potentially significant electoral consequences. The apex heard the case on October 12 and reserved judgment. The outcome could determine whether the affected ANC candidates will be allowed to contest the elections.
Mbalula’s call for a review comes amid mounting disagreements between the ANC and DA over policy, budgets and decision-making since the GNU was formed in 2024. The parties have clashed over the National Health Insurance Act, the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act, land expropriation and proposed value-added tax increases. They have also traded accusations over consultation and the handling of major government decisions.
The DA has repeatedly criticised what it sees as unilateral action by the ANC, while the governing party has continued to advance policies that the DA opposes.
These disputes have tested a coalition formed after the ANC lost its parliamentary majority in the 2024 national elections. Mbalula’s demand puts the DA’s role in the coalition under renewed political scrutiny.
