The programme
The ANC Nelson Mandela Region took its 2026 election campaign into Ward 46 on Sunday, with NEC members Cde Mmamoloko Kubayi and Cde Andile Lungisa joining Regional Secretary Cde Siphiwo Tshaka, branch activists and cluster leaders in a day of church engagement, branch mobilisation and door-to-door canvassing.
The programme brought together three linked engagements: the 126th anniversary celebrations of the Church of Umzi WaseTopiya in Motherwell, a campaign briefing at the Mzwabantu Fanayo Branch and direct voter contact in the ward. It formed part of the ANC’s intensified mobilisation ahead of the 2026 Local Government Elections, with the campaign being pushed visibly into communities.
Church marks the start
The day began in Motherwell, where the Church of Umzi WaseTopiya marked a monumental 126 years of existence. As a fellow centenary organisation, the ANC joined the community in recognising the church’s role in local life. The gathering gave the delegation a moment to engage with congregants in a setting shaped by faith, history and service.
For the ANC, church engagements hold a special place in the movement: the church remains a sacred space, central to the social life and wellbeing of communities. The movement also acknowledged the institutions that help hold residents together beyond politics.
Branch sets the pace
From Motherwell, the delegation moved to the Mzwabantu Fanayo Branch in Ward 46, where ANC leaders received a briefing from local structures before beginning the door-to-door programme. The briefing gave the campaign its local direction, with branch leadership helping to frame the issues, the route and the community contacts that would shape the canvassing work.
The branch played a central role in the day’s mobilisation. It was the space where the political work was prepared, coordinated and grounded in local realities rather than imposed from above.
Door-to-door work
The day’s most vibrant part came when leaders and activists went into the ward to speak directly with residents. The canvassing brought the campaign to the doorstep, where residents could raise concerns, ask questions and engage with the movement on service delivery, organisation and the road to the elections.
This is where election work becomes visible. A voter does not experience a campaign through statements alone, but through who comes to the house, who listens and who follows up. The Ward 46 engagements placed ANC members at the centre of that relationship and turned the campaign into a direct conversation with the community.
Mobilisation ahead
The ANC’s broader objective remains the retention of its majority in the 2026 Local Government Elections. Sunday’s deployment showed how the movement is approaching that task: through visible leadership, active branches and continuous community mobilisation.
The day also showed that the campaign is being built from the ground up. National leadership gave support, regional leadership provided coordination, branch structures carried local knowledge and activists delivered the doorstep engagement.
That combination matters because the campaign will ultimately be judged in communities, not in offices. The ANC’s challenge is to keep that work going, to remain present after the visit and to turn one day of mobilisation into a continuing relationship with residents.
What the day showed
The Ward 46 programme connected faith, organisation and political work in one sequence. It recognised a church institution, strengthened branch mobilisation and took the campaign directly to the people.
The People’s Register
“The campaign will be won through contact, discipline and sustained work in the wards.”
For ANC members, the message was clear. Sunday’s deployment showed the organisation doing exactly that.
Follow the campaign record
The People’s Register reports the ANC’s Nelson Mandela Bay campaign from the ground, ward by ward.
Sources and further reading
This report draws on the campaign programme of the ANC Nelson Mandela Region and public reporting.