197 election objections, 2 upheld: the wards being recounted

The Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) has received 197 objections to the 2026 local government election, and has upheld two of them, IEC chairperson Mosotho Moepya said at a media briefing on Saturday, 7 November at the Results Operations Centre in Midrand.

If you live in one of the wards being recounted, or in a council that is still being finalised, the result you are seeing on the IEC dashboard could still move before the formal declaration on Sunday.

Where the objections stand

By 15:00 on Saturday, the IEC's tally was as follows, according to Mapepeza News Media's report of the IEC update and The Citizen.

That leaves most objections still being decided. Moepya said commissioners were "seeking to issue our determinations as soon as possible", The Citizen reported.

The two upheld objections led to one "edit window" being ordered, which allows affected results to be recaptured, according to Mapepeza. Moepya said the objectors had been notified or were receiving that correspondence.

Which wards are being recounted

The IEC named recounts in five wards across four municipalities, The Citizen reported.

In the Western Cape, provincial electoral officer Michael Hendrickse said one recount had already been concluded in a single voting district in Breede Valley, in the presence of party agents, EWN reported.

Separately, News24 reported that recounts were held earlier in three Atteridgeville wards after an ANC grievance, and that the ANC won all three after they had initially been reported as ActionSA wins. The IEC told News24 that recounts are "an in-built mechanism in the counting process", and that counting officers may order one at any point before they finalise a result.

Which councils are still being finalised

Six provinces had finished processing results by Saturday afternoon: Free State, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Limpopo. The municipalities still outstanding were listed in the IEC update.

Moepya said the commission expected to finish these "early this evening or tonight", The Citizen reported.

What counts as an objection

Objections fall under Section 65 of the Local Government: Municipal Electoral Act and must be capable of having a material bearing on the outcome. Moepya said they "are not synonyms with complaints", per The Citizen.

Valid grounds relate to voting, the counting of votes, unlawful interference with election processes at or near a voting station, or intimidation or obstruction of voters. Internal party candidate disputes, ward demarcation and voters' roll queries fall outside the process, according to the IEC update.

The deadline was Friday, 6 November, but late written objections may still be considered where there is good cause, The Citizen and Mapepeza reported.

Can results still change after Sunday?

Yes, in limited cases. If an objection is upheld before the declaration, the IEC may exclude votes from a voting station, deduct votes from a party or candidate, or reduce the total votes recorded. If one is upheld after the declaration, the commission may amend the results or refer the matter to the Electoral Court, according to the IEC update.

The IEC has warned that all results, and provisional seat allocations, remain provisional until every objection is decided. Moepya cautioned against treating the results dashboard figures as final.

When the final results come

The IEC plans to announce the official 2026 local government election results on Sunday, 8 November 2026, at 18:00, according to Mapepeza's report of the IEC update. The SABC carried Saturday's briefing live.