The Economic Freedom Fighters have made Stellenbosch a focal point of their 2026 local government election campaign, as a practical target and a symbol of transformation.

With the vote on Wednesday 4 November, the EFF is one of 18 parties contesting Stellenbosch’s 23 wards and 45 council seats. The party named Inathi Ngcwembe as its proposed mayoral candidate, against the DA’s Jeremy Fasser and GOOD’s Marius van Stade.

The DA holds 27 seats on the current council, the ANC eight, GOOD three, and the EFF and Patriotic Alliance two each. The EFF won no ward seats in 2021.

ALSO READ: Election watch: The race is on for seats in Stellenbosch council

‘Every ward, every street’

At the party’s electoral meeting in EFF deputy president Godrich Gardee reportedly declared in August that the party would contest “every ward, every street,” including areas he called traditionally “white-exclusive,” specifically naming Stellenbosch and Constantia.

“We will govern even in Stellenbosch and Constantia,” Gardee reportedly said.

The EFF reportedly submitted 4 474 candidates for all 498 wards nationally, meeting the IEC deadline at the end of August.

Malema’s land remarks

Stellenbosch drew national attention in July when EFF leader Julius Malema, speaking at the University of Limpopo on 23 July, reportedly referenced Kayamandi, the township in Stellenbosch.

He reportedly described overcrowding and said he had told residents to “take that land” and “occupy that land”.

He reportedly pointed to roughly 3 000 ha of open land adjacent to Kayamandi with a single house, and said Kayamandi’s youth would occupy a farm in Stellenbosch.

Following the remarks, AfriForum filed a contempt-of-court application in the Pretoria High Court in August, arguing the remarks breached a 2017 order barring Malema from inciting trespassing. The civic rights organisation reportedly sought a R500 000 fine for the EFF and an 18-month sentence for Malema. There has been no judgment in the matter.

Gardee reportedly dismissed the application as a distraction, calling AfriForum “lizards” and saying the EFF had “a crocodile to face” on 4 November.

The manifesto pitch

The EFF reportedly launched its 2026 manifesto in July, under the slogan “Victory or Death.” Malema reportedly said: “There can be no real freedom without functioning municipalities.”

Reported pledges include free electricity and water for social grant recipients, housing with flushing toilets, scrapping the tender system for insourced workers, and gender parity in councils.

ALSO READ: Head to head: Stellenbosch’s mayoral hopefuls clash at Woordfees debate

The PA’s promise

Meanwhile, the PA, led by Gayton McKenzie, launched its manifesto in Bloemfontein late September. McKenzie reportedly promised a three-month municipal-rates holiday for qualifying property owners and the write-off of historic municipal debt for indigent and low-income households.

He further pledged title deeds for tenants in council houses for 20 years or more.

The PA’s “Abahambe” programme – licensing traders and verifying business owners are legally entitled to trade – reportedly sits at the centre of its local offer.

Other reported pledges include free municipal Wi-Fi, neighbourhood-watch support, affordable-housing requirements on municipal land, and a 100-day transparency plan to audit infrastructure and publish repair times.

A shifting landscape

In an April 2026 by-election, the PA reportedly took Ward 15 (Cloetesville) from the DA by 177 votes after councillor Elsabe Vermeulen reportedly defected. The PA is now tied with the EFF at two seats each.

For both parties, the Stellenbosch campaign reportedly pairs service delivery with a symbolic challenge to DA dominance.

Whether either translates into seats will be decided on 4 November.

ALSO READ: Stellenbosch Municipality says it will not be drawn into pre-election ‘mudslinging’