JOHANNESBURG - The Democratic Alliance is projected to win the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality, according to eNCA's MarkData election projection.
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Ekurhuleni has historically been an ANC stronghold. However, the projection suggests the party's support could fall from 38% to about 22% in this local government election.
This decline is not driven by significant growth in DA support, but rather by the rising support of ActionSA.
According to the data, the DA's support in the municipality has remained relatively steady, with the party expected to secure about 29% of the vote.
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"ActionSA has emerged as a significant role player," says election analyst Wayne Sussman.
In the previous local government election, ActionSA secured 7% of the vote and 15 seats in the municipality. The latest projection suggests the party could more than double its support.
While the final results are still being counted, the data indicates that ActionSA could secure between 15% and 19% of the vote.
The party's mayoral candidate, Xolani Khumalo, has also helped boost its performance.