Bay coalition talks turn on DA’s eight-seat gap and ANC’s options

The DA needs eight more seats for an outright majority in Nelson Mandela Bay. The ANC has experience of leading and joining coalitions, and room to seek a wider partnership.

TPR’s complete council allocation, checked on 10 November, matches its previously reviewed 7 November record: DA 53, FF Plus three, UDM three and ActionSA two. Together they total 61 of 120 seats, the outright-majority threshold.

Daily Maverick’s Andisa Bonani reported on 8 November that the DA had approached FF Plus, UDM and ActionSA, with FF Plus mayoral candidate Bill Harington confirming contact. DA candidate Retief Odendaal reiterated that his party would not govern with the EFF or MK.

In November 2021, the ANC’s Eugene Johnson became mayor, heading a mayoral committee that included seven other parties. In May 2023, the ANC joined the EFF, Patriotic Alliance and Northern Alliance in the coalition that replaced DA mayor Retief Odendaal with the Northern Alliance’s Gary van Niekerk.

In its regional statement of Saturday, 7 November, quoted by Bonani, the ANC offered to work with others towards stable, accountable government focused on water, electricity, refuse removal, roads, safety and housing. Those priorities could form the basis of a common, people-centred turnaround programme if the ANC can persuade enough partners to agree on how it would be delivered.

MK has since described its own limits. In Algoa FM’s 10 November report by Sinaye Ntshudu, regional coordinator Masixole Mashelele excluded the DA and FF Plus as partners and said the party’s national team would handle negotiations.

Mayibuye Civic Movement president Zumani told Algoa FM that his party was comfortable in opposition, where it believed it could hold the incoming administration accountable. Its two seats belong to a separate party from Afrika Mayibuye Movement, which has one.

The ANC has 32 seats. All parties other than the DA and FF Plus total 64. Setting aside Mayibuye Civic’s two would leave 62 held by 15 parties. An administration pursuing that route would need at least 61 of their seats for a full-council majority. Whether those parties would support one another remains unsettled.

Any partners who reach agreement will inherit an existing programme of infrastructure investment. The municipality’s published 2026/27 approved-budget summary allocates R312.1-million in capital funding to water services and R155.7-million to sanitation. The task is to turn those allocations into completed work and more reliable services.

The 2025/26 mid-year performance report shows why delivery needs scrutiny. For July–December 2025 it recorded real water losses of 38.3%, against a 33% target. It cited faulty or stolen meters and delays capturing meters and readings in the billing system, while reporting 4,150 defective meters replaced and 327 new ones installed.

Recruitment was also falling behind. Of 321 posts filled during that period, only 116 were filled within six months. The report linked senior-management recruitment delays to a postponed October 2025 council meeting and recruitment items deferred to December. This is a historical record of delayed decisions, rather than a count of vacancies today.

Published water-project progress and timely appointment decisions would give residents practical measures of whether a new partnership is working. The budget identifies resources; the earlier performance record shows where administration and council decisions have failed to keep pace.

The next evidence to watch for is a published governing agreement and the recorded election of council leadership. An official first-sitting notice would establish the meeting arrangements. This review of the municipality’s notices and council-agenda index did not verify a date.