Most people in Johannesburg would back a coalition between the Democratic Alliance (DA) and African National Congress (ANC) should no party win a majority in the city ahead of local government elections (LGE), which are likely to be held at the end of the year.

This is according to a poll conducted in late February and early March by the Social Research Foundation (SRF), in conjunction with The Common Sense.

The following statement was put to people: “Should no one party win a majority and the ANC and DA can form a majority together in any municipality or metro after the next local government elections, they should do so and form a coalition together.” They could agree or disagree with the statement.

Seventy-one percent of respondents in Johannesburg said they agreed with the statement, with 24% disagreeing.

Such a potential governing arrangement was also backed by both ANC and DA voters.

A strong majority of ANC voters said they agreed with the statement, with 82% saying they agreed with it and 19% saying they did not. Seventy-seven percent of DA supporters in the city said they agreed with the statement and 33% said they did not.

Polling by the SRF/The Common Sense shows that no party is likely to win a majority in Johannesburg, with the DA polling at 39% and the ANC at 30%. Any coalition formed by the DA without the ANC, or by the ANC without the DA, is likely to be unstable. However, if the polling results reflect the outcomes of the upcoming LGE in the city, then the ANC and DA could form a stable two-party coalition with a comfortable majority in Johannesburg.

Johannesburgers are also likely tired of the city’s serial governance instability (in the past ten years the city has had nine mayors) and an arrangement that brings some stability would likely be welcomed by most people in the City of Gold.