The DA’s Khathutshelo Rasilingwane (left) and ActionSA’s Xolani Khumalo are currently the only contenders for the Ekurhuleni mayoral race in the 4 November local government elections. (Photos: Supplied | Illustration: Kevin Momberg) In the Gauteng metros, the lead-up to the 4 November local government elections has largely focused on Johannesburg, where the DA’s Helen Zille has used social media to highlight the ANC-led coalition’s governance failures.
In Ekurhuleni, meanwhile, the race has been heating up. So far, the DA and ActionSA have put forward their mayoral candidates: Khathutshelo Rasilingwane and Xolani Khumalo, respectively.
The ANC, whose Nkosindiphile Xhakaza holds the mayoral chains, is still weighing up its options, while the EFF and MK party have also not announced candidates.
In 2021, the ANC won 38.19%, followed by the DA with 28.72%, EFF with 13.47% and ActionSA with 6.6%.
With the ANC expected to struggle in the elections and the DA predicting it will gain a greater share of the vote, the mayoral chains might once again change hands in Ekurhuleni, which has a population of more than four million people.
We spoke to the DA and ActionSA candidates.
While both candidates draw on personal experiences rooted in Tembisa, they differ in how they believe Ekurhuleni should be governed.
Khathutshelo Rasilingwane
The DA’s Rasilingwane was born in Limpopo and moved to Gauteng as a child following her father’s death, later growing up in an informal settlement in Tembisa. She argues that her lived experience and political training give her a clear understanding of what residents expect from the metro.
She holds qualifications in marketing management and business administration from the University of the Witwatersrand. Her political identity is closely tied to her upbringing in an informal settlement, an experience she says shaped her focus on service delivery and governance.
“I feel that leaders use our pain to sway us into voting in a certain direction,” she said, adding that she didn’t feel represented by the ANC.
“I’d like to show people that you can be a black person, you can be from an informal settlement and decide otherwise.”
She said she was inspired to join the DA by a counsellor from that party who showed effort and care in addressing the issues her community faced.
As a member of the DA since 2010, she has spent nearly a decade within Ekurhuleni’s council structures, including serving as a councillor and briefly as MMC for community safety. She is currently an MPL in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature.
/file/attachments/orphans/IMG_3026_304839.jpeg "DA mayoral candidate Khathutshelo Rasilingwane speaks to fellow party members during a campaign event on 31 March. (Photo: Reitumetse Pilane)")
Xolani Khumalo
In contrast to Rasilingwane ’s traditional political background, ActionSA’s Khumalo is a newcomer to the political arena. Born and raised in Tembisa, he has spoken about losing his parents at a young age and spending time in foster care before reconnecting with his family.
He is best known as the host of the crime-focused television show Sizok’thola, and he has built a public image around confronting drug-related crime. On the show, he and his security team confront alleged drug dealers.
Khumalo’s crime-fighting approach has also had legal consequences. In 2023, he was arrested and charged with murder following the death of a man during the filming of his television show in Katlehong. The charges were later withdrawn pending further investigation.
More recently, he has been charged with assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and the pointing of a firearm, linked to a 2025 police operation. He has pleaded not guilty.
Khumalo and his party have argued that these cases are part of a broader pattern of retaliation against his anti-crime work, though this has not been independently substantiated.
“We always work with police and law enforcement,” he told Daily Maverick. “Useless leaders call us vigilantes, and we don’t care what they think. If I ever crossed the line, I’d be in prison.”
Beyond his television persona, Khumalo describes himself as “a human being before a political leader” and a businessman, having worked in the drilling and blasting industry for over a decade. He launched the Xolani Khumalo Foundation in 2023, a non-profit organisation aimed at preventing crime and advocating for a drug-free society.
Positioning himself as a community activist rather than a “career politician contaminated by corruption”, Khumalo argues that his experience in business and grassroots work equips him to lead the city.
He frames his candidacy around the belief in youth-driven leadership and community-centred governance.
Plans and promises
The Auditor-General recently announced that Ekurhuleni received a qualified audit with findings in 2024/25, regressing from two years of unqualified audits.
Rasilingwane’s campaign centres on governance reform, financial recovery, and the restoration of public trust.
Her priorities include fixing failing infrastructure, stabilising municipal finances, and improving service delivery, particularly in areas affected by water and electricity disruptions. She has also raised concerns about abandoned housing projects, arguing that better planning and oversight are needed.
Both candidates point to corruption and cadre deployment as key drivers of governance failures in Ekurhuleni, and both cite the stalled Clayville Extension 45 housing project in Tembisa as a clear example.
According to a report by The Citizen, the R122-million development, which was intended to deliver 452 social housing units, began in 2017 but was halted roughly two years later. The site remains abandoned and has reportedly been vandalised.
Khumalo referred to the project while outlining his proposal for a municipal anti-corruption unit, arguing that those implicated in failed or irregular developments should be held accountable.
/file/attachments/orphans/IMG_7758_720882.jpeg "ActionSA mayoral candidate Xolani Khumalo ahead of the Ekurhuleni local elections. (Photo: Reitumetse Pilane)")
His campaign is built around tackling crime — particularly drug-related activity — and the removal of undocumented immigrants from the city.
“Last night, I slept for two hours after working on a drug bust that ended at 4am,” he told Daily Maverick recently. “You can’t be a mayor and not do such things on the ground.”
He argued that governance itself is not complex, and that corruption and weak leadership have led to the city’s decline. His campaign also links to ActionSA’s anti-foreigner stance.
“Criminals are thriving, our buildings have been hijacked, and we are surrounded by hobos who feed our children drugs,” he said, adding that the state’s failure to address illegal mining adequately was further harming communities.
His proposals include introducing stricter vetting processes for officials and prioritising law enforcement. He has called for stricter enforcement of immigration laws, arguing that undocumented immigration places pressure on public services and infrastructure.
Khumalo was highly critical of government performance since the end of apartheid, stating that “the biggest heist has been the looting of the city”.
Both candidates cautioned voters against repeating voting choices and expecting different outcomes.
Rasilingwane urged residents to “tap into the bravery of our freedom fighters and exercise our hard-won rights”.
The next mayor’s inheritance
Ekurhuleni — meaning “place of peace” — has, in recent years, been marked by persistent service delivery failures, infrastructure strain, and growing concerns over crime and corruption.
Since 2021, the city has become a symbol of South Africa’s coalition-era volatility, with shifting alliances and repeated leadership changes.
Following the 2021 local elections, a DA-led minority coalition took control of the metro, electing Tania Campbell as mayor. Her tenure was interrupted by a motion of no confidence before she later returned to office, only to be removed again in March 2023.
/file/attachments/orphans/ED_394080_979867.jpg "Former Ekurhuleni mayor Tania Campbell. (Photo: Luba Lesolle / Gallo Images)")
She was succeeded by Sivuyile Ngodwana of the AIC. He was also later removed through another motion of no confidence, after which ANC councillor Nkosindiphile Xhakaza was elected mayor in April 2024.
While the ANC remains the largest party in the city, as in many urban centres, its support has declined to below majority levels. The city is currently governed through an unstable ANC-led minority coalition, including the Patriotic Alliance and the National Freedom Party. This arrangement followed the collapse of the ANC-EFF alliance in February 2026, leaving the council with no party holding a 50%-plus-one majority.
As a major industrial and logistics hub contributing around 23% of Gauteng’s economy, Ekurhuleni’s decline carries economic consequences beyond the city itself.
The municipality is facing mounting financial pressure, with billions in outstanding debt and ongoing concerns over mismanagement. Between 2023 and 2025, two municipal finance officials were assassinated while probing financial irregularities.
More recently, the Madlanga Commission has intensified scrutiny on governance in the metro, uncovering allegations of corruption and criminality within the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department.
Testimony before the commission has revealed systemic failures, including at least 275 officers with criminal records, unlawful vehicle registrations, and the provision of blue lights to individuals allegedly linked to organised crime. The probe has already led to the arrest of suspended EMPD Deputy Chief Julius Mkhwanazi and City Manager Kagiso Lerutla.
Political forces shaping the race
As a relatively new but fast-growing party, ActionSA has positioned itself as a challenger for Gauteng’s metros. It currently governs the City of Tshwane through a coalition, with Dr Nasiphi Moya serving as mayor, alongside partners including the ANC and the EFF.
Khumalo pointed to Moya’s leadership as evidence that ActionSA has a “good recipe” to govern a metro. Under Moya’s administration, the City of Tshwane has reported progress in its financial recovery, including a reduction in debt owed to Eskom from R6.7-billion to R5.66-billion.
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/ED_532606.jpg "City of Tshwane Mayor Nasiphi Moya. (Photo: Fani Mahuntsi / Gallo Images )")
Reporting by The Citizen shows that her administration has also faced criticism from opposition parties, who argue that the Auditor-General’s findings point to continued financial strain and governance challenges.
Both the DA and ActionSA would probably have to work with other parties in a coalition in Ekurhuleni. The question is who they could partner with.
Rasilingwane acknowledged the likelihood of coalition governance, stating that the DA would prioritise working with parties aligned to its stance on merit-based appointments and anti-corruption.
However, the DA continues to make the case for governing outright, which would give it a much easier ride in government.
The party often points to municipalities where it governs outright as examples of its administrative approach. These include Cape Town, uMngeni Local Municipality and Midvaal Local Municipality, the latter having received 12 consecutive clean audits from the Auditor-General. In Midvaal, the party has linked governance stability to increased investor confidence, citing developments such as the Riverstone Mall project. DM