Ramaphosa votes at Hyde Park High as long queues stretch across the country

President Cyril Ramaphosa cast his vote at Hyde Park High School in Johannesburg on Wednesday, alongside First Lady Dr Tshepo Motsepe, as South Africans went to the polls to elect local representatives in the 2026 Local Government Elections.

Speaking after voting, the President described the turnout as a historic moment and pointed to the queues visible across the country.

“This is a historic day in the life of our beloved country, South Africa. The turnout of our people, as one looks at the TV screens, the queues that are all over the country just makes this a very special and historic day,” he said.

He said the turnout demonstrates democracy in action and reflects the aspirations of the Freedom Charter, which declares that “the people shall govern”.

“This is democracy at work, and this is what our people want to see. That indeed, is what the Freedom Charter writers said – that the people shall govern – is what we are seeing today,” he said.

Ramaphosa said the participation should give South Africans confidence in the country’s democratic processes, even as he acknowledged that municipalities continue to face challenges. Government, he said, remains committed to rebuilding local government and improving service delivery.

“I have seen the challenges that we face at local government level, but we, as government, are determined to rebuild our local government structure to ensure that what was promised as a better life for our people, as we articulated in our National Development Plan, will become a reality,” he said.

The President said he expects the councillors elected in this round to be more committed to serving their communities, whichever party they represent.

“A new crop of councillors is going to come through now, and I am confident that from all parties, they will be more committed to serving our people,” he said.

He said the inauguration of new councils in the coming days would open a new chapter for local government, with an emphasis on improved governance and service delivery.

Ramaphosa also urged registered voters who had not yet cast a ballot to do so before stations closed.

“To those who are watching, who have not yet gone out to vote, all I can say is, go out and vote. You are a resident, you are a citizen of this country. You too have a responsibility to determine the future of our country. and our municipalities.”

He said the number of parties and candidates contesting this election had made it stand out from previous local government polls.

“My view is that we’ve never really, in years, had a Local Government Election like this, where we have so many parties, so many South Africans interested in representing our people. So that in itself makes this moment a really, truly special one,” he said.

He appealed to the media to keep encouraging voter participation, saying every South African should be part of what he called a historic moment in the country’s democratic journey.

This report is drawn from SAnews (South African Government News Agency), the government’s own account of the President’s remarks, published at https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/lge-president-hails-voter-turnout. It is a summary of his comments rather than a transcript, and it does not carry the final national turnout figures.