The High Court has declared the ANC’s decision to remove former Nelson Mandela Bay councillor Andile Lungisa from its proportional representation candidate list for the upcoming local government elections unconstitutional and unlawful.
The court ordered ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula and the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) to take immediate steps to reinstate Lungisa’s name on the party’s internal list.
The ruling follows an urgent application brought by Lungisa after his name was removed from the ANC’s candidate list shortly before the deadline for submitting nominations to the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC).
In its judgment, the court found that the respondents had failed to establish that Lungisa had not attended the party’s vetting process, which formed the basis of their defence.
The court further ruled that, even if aspects of the vetting process remained outstanding, Mbalula had not demonstrated that he had the authority to unilaterally remove Lungisa’s name at that advanced stage of the candidate-selection process.
“The decision to unilaterally remove the applicant’s name from the second respondent’s proportional representation list was accordingly unlawful and unconstitutional,” the judgment reads.
Lungisa had argued that his name had progressed through the ANC’s prescribed candidate-selection procedures and was included on the list when the party’s NEC met to finalise its candidates in late August.
He told the court that he had attended an interview on August 6 and subsequently progressed to further stages of the selection process.
The court noted that Lungisa became aware of the removal of his name on August 28, at approximately 12:37, just hours before the 5pm deadline for submitting candidate nominations.
Mbalula reportedly told Lungisa that he had failed to attend the vetting process and requested documentation relating to the expungement of his criminal record.
However, the court found that there was no evidence that a properly constituted decision-making body had made a final determination disqualifying Lungisa before his name was removed.
The judgment emphasised that the ANC’s internal guidelines established a structured process for selecting and approving candidates, with restrictions on changes to the final lists.
The court held that interpreting the rules as allowing an individual office-bearer to alter the final list unilaterally would undermine the safeguards established by the party’s own procedures.
“The applicant was entitled at least to have the rules governing his candidacy applied consistently and in accordance with their terms,” the court said.
The judgment also addressed the constitutional right to participate in the activities of a political party, stating that while this does not entitle a member to automatic selection as a candidate, political parties must apply their own rules consistently with the Constitution.
Lungisa had sought an order compelling the ANC to restore his name to its internal list and, where legally permissible, submit it to the IEC.
The court cautioned that the electoral commission could not be ordered to act contrary to the applicable electoral legislation or statutory deadlines.
It ordered that, should the Chief Electoral Officer allow the ANC to supplement its candidate list under Item 17(1) of Schedule 1 to the Local Government: Municipal Structures Act, Lungisa’s name must be submitted as part of the supplementary list, subject to the applicable legal requirements.
The court declined to hold Mbalula personally liable, finding that the evidence did not sufficiently establish the alleged personal motive, bad faith or other grounds necessary to justify such liability.
The ANC’s first three respondents were ordered to pay Lungisa’s legal costs on an attorney-and-client scale, including the costs of two counsel on Scale C.
The local government elections are scheduled for November 4, 2026.
