The Democratic Alliance (DA) projects that more than one million black South Africans voted for the party in the 2026 local government elections, DA Federal Council chairperson Ashor Sarupen said in a statement today.

“The DA’s election data modelling indicates that, for the first time in our history, more than one million black South Africans will have voted for the Democratic Alliance in this Local Government Election of 2026,” Sarupen said.

Sarupen said the DA’s first results projection was made this morning.

He said the party’s projections also indicate that the DA will have received more votes from black South Africans than the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), “making us a mainstream party in every community, whether you are black, white, coloured or Indian”.

“These are projections, and we await the final certified results,” Sarupen said.

“For too long, South African politics has been defined by the assumption that the colour of your skin determines the party you vote for,” Sarupen said. “The DA has always believed that South Africa can be different, that we can build a party for all, that works for all, and that delivers for all.

“Early results suggest that this vision is finding support across more communities than ever before,” Sarupen added.

He said South Africa was moving towards a country in which voting for the DA, “regardless of the colour of your skin or the community in which you live, is no longer regarded as an unusual political choice”.

Sarupen said a South Africa in which voting for a party for all South Africans was unremarkable would itself be remarkable, because “it means that the old racial boundaries of our politics are beginning to lose their hold”.