The IOL 2026 Town Hall Debate in Cape Town turned fiery at times, with the mayoral candidates challenging Democratic Alliance (DA) mayoral candidate and Deputy Mayor Eddie Andrews over housing, spatial planning and racism ahead of the November 4 local government elections.
The debate, hosted by IOL editor-in-chief Lance Witten, saw candidates outline their plans to tackle some of the city’s most pressing challenges, with housing emerging as one of the most contentious issues during the debate.
The candidates also had one minute each to convince voters why they should put an X next to their respective parties on election day.
The participating candidates were Roger Solomons of Build One South Africa (BOSA), Brett Herron of the GOOD Party, Andrews of the DA, Faiez Jacobs of the African National Congress (ANC), Virgil Gericke of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), Fadiel Adams of the National Coloured Congress (NCC), Shameemah Dollie Salie of Al Jama-ah and Nosipho Makamba of the Afrika Mayibuye Movement.
The audience, which included party supporters, members and ward councillors, frequently responded to the exchanges with laughter and commentary as the candidates traded arguments.
‘A tale of two cities’ puts housing in the spotlight
The debate over whether Cape Town is becoming a “tale of two cities” dominated the discussion, with opposition candidates accusing the DA-led city of perpetuating spatial inequality and keeping poorer communities away from more affluent areas.
Adams argued that the City of Cape Town was failing to create an inclusive urban environment.
“The City of Cape Town is going to try to keep our people away from the good areas,” he said.
Herron echoed the criticism, arguing that the city’s spatial planning framework entrenched divisions reminiscent of the apartheid-era Group Areas Act.
Makamba also accused the DA of deliberately maintaining divisions between different parts of the city, arguing that the party needed to be defeated.
The exchanges placed Andrews under pressure to defend the DA’s record on housing and its approach to addressing Cape Town’s longstanding spatial inequalities.
‘Is the DA racist?
The pointed question from Witten about whether the DA was racist seemed to be on everyone's minds as it prompted laughter and reactions from the audience.
Andrews defended the city’s housing approach, arguing that the DA was focused on providing affordable housing opportunities.
“What we offer is dignified housing opportunity where you can have a place to stay in. But the panellists are saying they don't want that,” Andrews said.
He maintained that Cape Town had delivered affordable housing opportunities, responding to criticism of the city’s housing record.
“To answer your question, the City of Cape Town has produced the most affordable housing opportunities [of] any other metro,” he said.
However, Adams challenged both the quality and affordability of housing available to poorer residents, and compared the contrasting housing in Bloemfontein with conditions on the Cape Flats.
“It's easy to build more when you are building crap,” Adams said, accusing the DA of allowing substandard housing.
He also questioned the DA’s position on Israel, asking: “If the DA is not racist, why does the DA support the apartheid state of Israel?”
Dollie Salie also questioned whether the housing opportunities being promoted by the city were structurally sound, raising concerns about reported cracks and other defects in some areas.
“How sure are you that these houses are actually sound? There are a lot of areas where there are cracks and problems,” she asked.
Her intervention put a spotlight on concerns beyond the availability of housing, including the quality and durability of homes being delivered.
Jacobs shifted the focus from the DA’s policies to the electorate itself, questioning why black and coloured voters continued to support a party led by a white mayoral candidate.
“There are black and coloured people in Cape Town, yet still vote for a white man. Are you not then part of the problem?” Jacobs asked.
With housing, spatial inequality and the DA’s record in the spotlight, the debate showed South Africans the visions for Cape Town as the city heads towards the November 4 local government elections.
IOL