Across six Johannesburg wards, the registered electorate has increased by more than 13,000 since 2021. But behind the figures lie substantial differences in voter participation, shifting registration patterns and a politically competitive landscape in which the ANC, Patriotic Alliance and Al Jama-ah secured ward victories in the previous local government elections.
A dramatic increase in registered voters in Ward 122, declining electoral rolls in Wards 9 and 120, and hundreds of candidate entries across six wards are among the defining features of the electoral landscape ahead of South Africa’s 4 November 2026 local government elections.
An analysis of voting records and registration figures across Johannesburg’s Wards 7, 8, 9, 120, 121 and 122 shows that the combined registered electorate has increased from 115,895 in 2021 to 129,233 in 2026.
This represents a net increase of 13,338 voters, or 11.51%.
However, the previous municipal election results raise another significant question: will the growing registered electorate translate into greater voter participation?
In 2021, the available ward-level figures reflected 50,358 votes against a combined registered electorate of 115,895 equivalent to approximately 43.45%.
The difference of 65,537 between the registered electorate and the reported voting figures highlights the scale of the participation challenge confronting political parties.
The ANC secured four wards, while the Patriotic Alliance (PA) and Al Jama-ah each won one.
With 342 candidate entries recorded across the six wards for 2026, residents face another crowded electoral contest.
Ward 122 dominates voter registration growth
The most striking development in the latest registration figures is Ward 122.
Its registered electorate increased from 18,908 in 2021 to 32,867 in 2026 a rise of 13,959 voters, or approximately 73.8%.
Ward 122 now has the largest registered electorate among the six wards, spread across 11 voting districts.
The increase is particularly significant because it exceeds the combined net growth of all six wards.
However, the underlying cause has not yet been established. Changes in ward boundaries, voting district allocations, residential developments and voter registration movements should all be considered before the increase is attributed to population growth.
Ward 8 recorded the second-largest increase, gaining 2,257 registered voters to reach 20,305.
Ward 7 increased from 19,786 to 20,769, while Ward 121 grew from 19,635 to 20,262.
Not all wards experienced growth.
Ward 120 recorded the largest decline, falling from 21,344 registered voters in 2021 to 18,757 in 2026 a reduction of 2,587.
Ward 9 also experienced a decrease, falling by 1,901 to 16,273 registered voters.
These shifts could have implications for local political campaigns, but voter registration totals alone cannot establish changes in party support.
Voter registration comparison: 2021 and 2026
| Ward | 2021 voters | 2026 voters | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 19,786 | 20,769 | +983 |
| 8 | 18,048 | 20,305 | +2,257 |
| 9 | 18,174 | 16,273 | −1,901 |
| 120 | 21,344 | 18,757 | −2,587 |
| 121 | 19,635 | 20,262 | +627 |
| 122 | 18,908 | 32,867 | +13,959 |
| Total | 115,895 | 129,233 | +13,338 |
Source: 2021 ward electoral figures and supplied 2026 IEC ward registration counts.
Collectively, the six wards account for 52 voting districts in the latest dataset.
Voter participation remains a major challenge
While political parties compete for the support of an expanding electorate, the 2021 figures reveal that voter participation was far from universal.
Ward 7 recorded 9,638 reported votes against 19,786 registered voters, making it the ward with the highest ratio of reported votes to registered voters in this group.
Ward 8 recorded the lowest ratio, with 6,509 votes against 18,048 registered voters approximately 36.1%.
Ward 9 recorded 8,513 votes against 18,174 registered voters, while Ward 121 recorded 9,190 against 19,635.
In Ward 120, 8,729 votes were recorded against 21,344 registered voters, while Ward 122 recorded 7,779 against 18,908.
These differences suggest that the challenge of electoral participation varies substantially from ward to ward.
The data does not establish why residents did not vote. Political disengagement, dissatisfaction, access barriers and personal circumstances are among the possible explanations.
Nevertheless, the scale of non-participation should concern every political party and candidate seeking public office.
Three political parties secured ward victories in 2021
The 2021 municipal elections produced a varied political landscape across the six wards.
The ANC secured Wards 8, 120, 121 and 122.
The Patriotic Alliance won Ward 7, while Al Jama-ah secured Ward 9.
This distribution illustrates that political competition across the six wards cannot be reduced to a contest between the ANC and one opposition party.
Different communities demonstrated different electoral preferences, with smaller parties also capable of securing direct ward representation.
The 2021 elected ward representatives
| Ward | Elected councillor | Party |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Lois Cathleen Simonse | PA |
| 8 | Molate Godfrey Lebea | ANC |
| 9 | Yakoob Karolia | Al Jama-ah |
| 120 | Celstina Nzimande | ANC |
| 121 | Khazamula Love Chauke | ANC |
| 122 | Nkosephayo God-Slove Zungu | ANC |
Ward 7: A significant Patriotic Alliance victory
Ward 7 was among the more politically competitive wards in 2021.
The Patriotic Alliance’s Lois Cathleen Simonse secured the ward councillor position.
The outcome illustrates the PA’s ability to secure local representation in a competitive political environment.
For 2026, Ward 7 has 20,769 registered voters across nine voting districts.
Its candidate list contains 56 entries, including 35 associated with individuals also contesting other wards.
A central question is whether the PA can retain its previous ward victory or whether its competitors can attract sufficient support to change the outcome.
Ward 8: Can the ANC retain its advantage?
Ward 8 was won by the ANC’s Molate Godfrey Lebea in 2021.
The ANC received 3,209 votes, or a reported 50.3%.
The EFF followed with 990 votes, while ActionSA received 972.
The narrow difference of just 18 votes between the EFF and ActionSA indicates that the two parties were closely matched in that contest.
However, Ward 8 also recorded the lowest ratio of reported votes to registered voters among the six wards.
This is an important consideration heading into the upcoming election.
The electorate has since increased to 20,305 registered voters, and 61 candidate entries feature in the 2026 analysis.
The challenge for political parties will be to strengthen their support while encouraging greater participation from residents who previously stayed away.
Ward 9: Al Jama-ah’s electoral position under scrutiny
Ward 9 produced a notable result in 2021 when Al Jama-ah’s Yakoob Karolia won the ward councillor seat.
The party received 4,142 votes, representing a reported 49% in the supplied results.
The DA followed with 1,495 votes, while the ANC received 1,417.
ActionSA recorded 1,002 votes.
The result demonstrated that Al Jama-ah could compete effectively against larger and more established parties at ward level.
However, Ward 9 has experienced a decline in registered voters, from 18,174 in 2021 to 16,273 in 2026.
For the approaching election, the ward has 56 candidate entries, including 37 associated with multi-ward candidates.
Whether Al Jama-ah can retain the support that secured its previous victory remains one of the important questions in this electoral contest.
Ward 120: A fragmented political contest
Ward 120 was won by the ANC’s Celstina Nzimande in 2021.
According to the supplied results, the ANC secured 3,017 votes, representing 36.9%.
The DA followed with 1,409 votes, while ActionSA received 1,296.
Al Jama-ah also recorded a significant showing, with 1,242 votes.
The distribution illustrates a relatively fragmented political contest in which several parties attracted meaningful support.
Unlike wards where one party dominated the results, Ward 120 presents an interesting case of political competition spread across several parties.
The registered electorate has since declined from 21,344 to 18,757.
With 55 candidate entries recorded for 2026, the ward could present opportunities for parties seeking to expand their influence.
However, historical results alone are insufficient to predict the outcome.
Ward 121: ANC victory, PA opposition
Ward 121 was won by the ANC’s Khazamula Love Chauke in 2021.
The ANC recorded 4,091 votes, representing a reported 47.2%.
The Patriotic Alliance followed with 1,354 votes, while the EFF received 824 and ActionSA 813.
The results indicate that the PA was an important challenger in the ward, although the ANC maintained a substantial lead.
The ward’s registered electorate has increased modestly from 19,635 in 2021 to 20,262 in 2026.
There are 60 candidate entries in the supplied 2026 candidate analysis.
The outcome could depend on whether opposition parties expand their support, whether the ANC retains its previous voters and how participation changes.
Ward 122: A growing electorate and strong ANC history
Ward 122 presents one of the most significant electoral developments in this six-ward analysis.
Not only has its registered electorate increased sharply, but the ANC also recorded one of its strongest performances here in 2021.
The ANC’s Nkosephayo God-Slove Zungu won the ward, with the party recording 4,902 votes, equivalent to a reported 64.4%.
The EFF received 733 votes, followed by ActionSA with 476.
The result represented a substantial ANC advantage.
However, the ward’s registered electorate has since increased from 18,908 to 32,867.
This creates an important question: how comparable is the 2026 electorate with the one that voted in 2021?
Before political conclusions can be drawn, electoral boundary and registration changes must be examined.
The ward now has 11 voting districts and 54 candidate entries.
The size of its registered electorate makes it a major area of interest in the upcoming municipal election, but the number of registered voters does not, on its own, establish which political party is likely to benefit.
342 candidate entries but how many distinct individuals?
Across the six wards, the candidate lists contain 342 entries.
Of these, 210 — approximately 61.4% are associated with candidates who are also standing in other wards.
This does not mean 342 separate people are contesting the six wards.
The figures highlight an increasingly important feature of municipal electoral politics: the use of multi-ward candidates.
Candidate landscape for 2026
| Ward | Candidate entries | Multi-ward entries |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | 56 | 35 |
| 8 | 61 | 35 |
| 9 | 56 | 37 |
| 120 | 55 | 36 |
| 121 | 60 | 32 |
| 122 | 54 | 35 |
| Total | 342 | 210 |
Political parties are permitted to nominate candidates in multiple wards, and the system creates electoral incentives for parties to contest as many wards as possible.
In metropolitan municipalities, ward votes can contribute to the calculation of a party’s overall council representation, even where that party’s candidate does not win the ward.
The practice is lawful, but it raises questions about meaningful local representation.
Residents may reasonably ask whether candidates standing in numerous wards are familiar with the communities they hope to represent.
They may also question whether candidates have a credible record of community involvement and whether they will remain accessible after the elections.
These questions should be directed fairly at all candidates and political parties, rather than assuming that a multi-ward nomination automatically indicates a lack of commitment.
The accountability test: What happened after 2021?
While voting results and candidate lists provide an important picture of electoral competition, they reveal little about what residents experienced during the previous municipal term.
For the councillors elected in 2021, the critical questions concern representation, responsiveness and the handling of local concerns.
Residents should be able to evaluate whether their elected representatives engaged meaningfully with communities, raised service delivery problems through municipal structures and followed up on commitments.
Water and sanitation, road maintenance, electricity, waste collection, public infrastructure and municipal responsiveness are among the issues that could form part of such an assessment.
These matters require investigation through council records, documented service delivery outcomes and residents’ experiences.
What makes the 2026 contest different?
Several features distinguish the upcoming election from 2021.
First, the registered electorate across the six wards has increased by 11.51%.
Second, the increase has been highly uneven. Ward 122 accounts for a substantial expansion, while Wards 9 and 120 have recorded reductions.
Third, the previous election produced ward victories for three different political parties, demonstrating that the area contains varied electoral constituencies.
Fourth, the 2026 candidate landscape is extensive, with multi-ward entries accounting for more than six out of every ten entries.
Finally, the available 2021 figures show that a substantial proportion of the registered electorate was not reflected in the reported voting totals.
Together, these factors create an election in which candidate credibility, turnout and political competition could prove particularly important.
Two ballot papers, two important decisions
Johannesburg residents will receive two ballot papers on 4 November 2026.
One ballot allows voters to elect their ward councillor, while the other allows them to choose a political party for proportional representation in the City of Johannesburg council.
A voter may choose an individual candidate from one party on the ward ballot and support a different party on the proportional representation ballot.
Understanding the difference enables residents to make informed electoral choices.
Voters should familiarise themselves with the candidates standing in their wards, examine party commitments and assess the records of those seeking re-election.
Beyond the ballot: Who will earn the public’s confidence?
The 2026 local government elections will test more than political popularity.
Across Wards 7, 8, 9, 120, 121 and 122, 129,233 registered voters now form part of the municipal electoral landscape.
The 2021 results show that the ANC, PA and Al Jama-ah were all capable of winning ward contests in this group.
The latest registration figures reveal substantial differences in how the electoral rolls have changed.
And the candidate lists demonstrate that voters face a wide range of political options.
Yet the central question remains whether the election will produce stronger voter participation and more accountable local representation.
Political parties will be measured not only by their promises but also by their ability to demonstrate credible plans, engage communities and respond to local concerns.
For residents, the election offers an opportunity to examine past performance, scrutinise prospective candidates and make informed decisions about the future of their wards.
The real test on 4 November will not simply be how many candidates appear on the ballot papers, but how many residents participate and whether those elected deliver the representation their communities expect.
About this report
This special electoral analysis examines Johannesburg Wards 7, 8, 9, 120, 121 and 122 using the supplied 2021 municipal election dataset, 2026 registered-voter figures and candidate-list compilation.
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