TUESDAY marks the start of a crucial day for political parties in Gauteng's metro municipalities and other sought-after districts, as the results of the sixth local government elections begin trickling in.
It remains to be seen who will emerge to the top and which political party will play king-maker at the end of it all.
ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba, who is intent on disrupting the status quo and making inroads into the City of Johannesburg, where he once led, on Monday voted at the Sandton Fire station, and re-emphasised that he still had unfinished business in the City of Johannesburg.
Mashaba, who had been locked in a fierce battle with the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) over the omission of his party name, said: “Yes, we feel we have been raised unfairly but you know me, you try and close the door on me and I'll always find a way out.”
Some of the more prominent leaders who voted yesterday included former presidents Thabo Mbeki in Houghton, and Kgalema Motlanthe in Killarney.
IEC chairman Glen Mashinini cast his vote in Fourways, while Gauteng Premier David Makhura cast his ballot in Centurion.
Meanwhile, the ANC continued to be haunted by angry community members, who yesterday still showed their gripes over the lack of service delivery in their respective wards.
Ramaphosa travelled to Soweto to cast his vote at the Hitekani Primary School, alongside his wife Dr Tshepo Motsepe.
Ramaphosa told the media, shortly after casting his vote, that the provision of services in municipalities has to change.
The ANC was also given 14 days, by residents from the Soweto, who boycotted the elections and protested outside Luthuli House, in the Johannesburg CBD, over lack of housing.
In Ekurhuleni, while Mzwandile Masina, who has been the incumbent mayor, voted, young people in some townships opted not to vote.
Nokulunga Ndlovu said she does not see a reason to vote because she is not benefiting from the municipality.
“I graduated in 2006 and I have been applying for administration jobs in the city of Ekurhuleni, but I have been unlucky. The government, in 2020, started giving out the unemployment grant of R350 and food parcels, but my three siblings and I have not benefited. I will not vote,” said Ndlovu.
The City of Tshwane is also one of the municipalities where political parties still face competition over the heart and soul of the City, following an unstable coalition-led administration in the past.
The ANC is intent on making vast inroads in Tshwane and so does the DA, while the EFF hopes to improve its representation in the council.
In the meantime, voters complained that some of the voting stations were not open on time, while others relayed their frustrations around ballot papers and voter management devices (VMDs).
Political Bureau