Battle for eThekwini: Water Shortages, Crime and Corruption Dominate 2026 Polls

So much is at stake as eThekwini Municipality prepares for the November local government elections. Once celebrated as an internationally renowned tourist destination, the city has become better known as South Africa’s corruption capital. Since 1994, eThekwini has only ever had ANC mayors. Now, with service delivery collapsing and crime rising, the metro faces its fiercest contest yet.

By CHRIS MAKHAYE

Durban is a city on the edge. Once the pride of KwaZulu‑Natal, it has in three decades slid from being a global tourist jewel to a corruption capital where broken taps, crime syndicates, and collapsing services dominate daily life. The November elections are shaping up as a bruising battle for the heart and soul of eThekwini, with analysts warning that the outcome will determine whether the city can claw back credibility or sink deeper into dysfunction.

City on the Brink

Durban’s loudest cry is water. Chronic shortages have left taps dry for weeks, with tanker deliveries often hijacked or diverted. Allegations of a water‑mafia tender cartel profiteering from desperation have deepened mistrust. Crime follows close behind: extortion linked to service contracts, hijackings, and gang violence feed off collapsing infrastructure. Roads are riddled with potholes, refuse piles up, and electricity supply falters. For many, daily life in eThekwini has become a struggle for survival in a city once seen as KwaZulu‑Natal’s jewel.

Parties and Their Candidates

Can They Breach the Poll Numbers?

The latest SRF August survey shows MK Party at 33%, DA at 23%, ANC at 18%, IFP at 16%, and EFF at 4%. but these statistics have been shifting back and forth since March this year and anything can happen between now and the 4 November poll date. Against this backdrop, each candidate must prove whether they can break through the ceiling set by the polls.

DA – Haniff Hoosen (23%): Former MP, announced early last year, has been on the campaign trail promising clean governance and service delivery reforms. His challenge is whether he can lift the DA beyond its 23% plateau.

ActionSA – Zwakele Mncwango (no measurable poll share): Provincial chairperson, positioning himself as a voice for accountability and anti‑corruption. He is a long-serving eThekwini Municipality who spent many years with the DA efore joining Action-SA as its KZN provincial leader.  His task is to convert ActionSA’s visibility into real numbers in eThekwini.

EFF – Hlengiwe Mkhaliphi (4%): She is the founding deputy secretary of the Economic Freedom Fighters, athough she is relatively unkown in eThekwini and in KZN in general. But she is expected to campaign on radical transformation and grassroots empowerment. The question is whether she can expand the EFF’s marginal presence beyond 4%.

ANC – Cyril Xaba, Thabani Nyawose, Nomusa Dube‑Ncube, Mina Soma‑Lesoma, Maggie Govender (18%): In as far as eThekwini mayoral candidate is concerned the ANC has decide on the unusual strategy of presenting five people, which some observers say is a sign of deep divisions within party, But the party itself contend that the five‑person shortlist reflect both continuity and renewal. The ANC’s challenge is whether any of these names can lift the party from its historic low of 18% back toward dominance.

MK Party – Zandile Hlophe‑Mkhwanazi (33%): Recently unveiled, tasked with stabilising a party rocked by factionalism and leadership churn. She is relatively unknown in political circles, with some believing that she is standing in for someone more senior in the MKP. Her test is whether she can hold MK’s lead at 33% or recover ground lost since March.

IFP – Mkhuleko Hlengwa (16%): National spokesperson and deputy minister, presenting himself as a youthful but experienced alternative. His challenge is whether he can push the IFP beyond its steady 16% base.

Each party is pitching itself as the antidote to the unstable coalition that has governed since 2021, marked by two mayors and repeated executive reshuffles.

Pre‑Election Assessment

Political analysts say the November elections will be a bruising contest for the heart and soul of eThekwini. With no party commanding a majority, the metro is expected to become the epicentre of KwaZulu‑Natal’s political struggle, where service delivery failures and corruption scandals will weigh heavily on voters’ choices.

Independent political and election analyst Wayne Sussman says it is not easy to predict which of the parties will emerge victorious as eThekwini will be “one of the most hotly contested municipalities in KwaZulu‑Natal.” 

“The ANC goes into the 2026 local government elections controlling 75 wards in eThekwini Municipality, controlling the overwhelming majority of the wards in the city, and they would be under great pressure to return as the largest party once again. But if one looks at the result of the 2024 general elections, the MK was by far the most popular party in eThekwini, taking between 47–48% of the vote, and they will be confident that they would win many wards in their debut local government elections and hope they can win the election outright. Something to bear in mind is that the DA tend to over‑perform in the local elections relative to the national and provincial elections. It remains to be seen whether the MK Party can get over the 50% mark and win the municipality outright.

“Will MKP Emerge?”

“So, the MK Party enters these elections as favourites to finish first, expect the DA to finish second, just ahead of the ANC, although the ANC may hope to recover some of its support. The IFP were able to stabilize its support relative to the 2021 to 2024 elections and with Mkhuleko Hlengwa as the mayoral candidate, they’ll hope to grow by a percent or two. Overall, it will be interesting who will emerge in these elections,” Sussman concluded, TQ