South Africa, future of the West 🇿🇦

🇿🇦🇺🇸 South African refugee arrivals update: In October, 1309 South African refugees arrived in the United States. This brings the total to 17 938. @SouthAfricaReports

📊🗳 South Africa’s ANC on Course for Worst Electoral Showing Yet The African National Congress, which led the fight against apartheid rule in South Africa, is on course for its worst electoral showing yet in this week’s municipal vote as it bore the brunt of public anger over water and power outages and potholed roads. With 70% of the ballots counted nationally, the ANC had 31.9% support, official tallies published on the Electoral Commission’s website on Friday showed. The party secured 45.6% backing in the last municipal elections five years ago and just over 40% in the last national vote in 2024, losing its parliamentary majority for the first time since it took power three decades earlier. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-11-05/south-africa-s-anc-on-course-to-shed-support-in-municipal-vote

📊🗳 With just over 53% of voting districts counted, this is how it stands 🟩 In the 2021 local government election, the ANC obtained 45% of the vote. At the moment, they're looking at a loss of close to 15 percentage points. We'll do a deep dive later. @SouthAfricaReports

📊🗳 As of 8am, with 20% of the vote counted, this is how it stands: 🟦 The DA is holding their historical lead in Western Cape and has overtaken the ANC in Gauteng (39% vs 18.6%). The DA is leading in the City of Johannesburg with a wide margin, but many black wards have not been counted yet. 🟨 The MK Party has overtaken the ANC and the IFP as the biggest party in KwaZulu-Natal. 🟩 The ANC might retake the lead in Gauteng as more votes come in. @SouthAfricaReports

East London, one of South Africa’s oldest industrial cities, risks becoming a ghost town if Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA) decides to scale back or shut down its local manufacturing operations. The warning comes as the city’s automotive industry faces mounting pressure following the United States government’s decision to exclude South Africa from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which provided preferential access to the American market. https://businesstech.co.za/news/business/882665/important-south-african-city-at-risk-of-becoming-a-ghost-town/

🇿🇦✝️ Brutal farm attack: Elderly couple burned, beaten as attackers tried to cut off wife’s nipples with bolt cutters An elderly couple were allegedly stripped naked, beaten and burned with boiling water as three armed attackers tortured them for safe keys at their Broederstroom game farm on Sunday evening, November 1. Close family friend Warren Geddes identified the victims as Les Brett (67) and his wife Natasha, (68). He said the attackers overpowered them in their home at approximately 19:30. According to Geddes, the couple endured hours of torture while the men demanded access to their safe. He alleged that when Les refused to surrender the keys, the attackers began cutting Natasha’s nipples with bolt cutters and repeatedly threatened to rape her. Geddes said they stopped when Les handed over the keys. https://www.citizen.co.za/rekord/news-headlines/2026/11/03/brutal-farm-attack-elderly-couple-burned-beaten-as-attackers-tried-to-cut-off-wifes-nipples-with-bolt-cutters/

🇿🇦 An elderly couple was tortured for hours during a brutal farm attack in Broederstroom. Les and Natasha Brett were assaulted by three assailants, burned with boiling water and threatened with horrific torture before handing over the keys to the safe. 📎 PETZER

110 municipalities across South Africa owe Eskom over R1 million each with total debt of R122.5 billion – MyBroadband https://mybroadband.co.za/news/energy/675376-110-municipalities-across-south-africa-owe-eskom-over-r1-million-each-with-total-debt-of-r122-5-billion.html

Official fuel price 4 November: Petrol R0.01 ⬇️ Diesel R1.20 ⬇️ https://businesstech.co.za/news/energy/882296/here-is-the-official-petrol-price-for-november-8/

🇿🇦✝️ Four suspects appeared in court today for the brutal farm attack on Donovan Marx Phindile Alex Nomngcayi, 30, Thomas Thabo Motlhangtlhong, 27, Mothoka Godfrey Mathipa, 56, and Mokhema Jan Maishoane, 53, face charges of attempted murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances, assault, as well as possession of guns and ammunition in what the State calls a “planned and premeditated offence”. The first two men were arrested this past Saturday, three days after Marx, 50, was shot, stabbed and had both ears cut off at his Syferfontein farm near Ventersdorp in the North West. Three others were arrested the following day in Promosa near Potchefstroom. During Sunday’s arrest, police seized four firearms linked to Marx’s attack, as well as clothing and jewellery. Marx’s attackers tied up a farmworker with cable ties before waiting for the farmer to arrive, then dragged him into the house and ransacked the property, stealing three firearms from a safe and fleeing in his bakkie. The fifth suspect is expected to turn state witness. @SouthAfricaReports

South Africa Staff Writer ·2 Nov 2026 Follow on Google News The United States has decided to remove South Africa from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), ending duty-free access to its markets for key industries. The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced the decision on Monday (2 November), stating the intention to remove the country from the list of eligible nations, along with Rwanda. President Trump notified the US Congress and the governments of Rwanda and South Africa of his intent to terminate them from the programme as of January 1, 2027. https://businesstech.co.za/news/business/882363/united-states-deals-severe-blow-to-south-africa/

🌆🗳 Piles of rubbish, power cuts and potholes: anger grows over Johannesburg’s run-down infrastructure One week before the local elections in South Africa, the pavements and roads of the Johannesburg township Alexandra were filled with piles of rubbish, rotting in the heat. At the Jukskei River, its banks choked with rubble and litter, foul-smelling brown water flowed out of a culvert. “We’ve got way too many challenges,” said Semadi Manganye, the chief executive of Alexandra Water Warriors, an environmental NGO that organises clean-ups of the river and plants trees on its banks. “If it’s not electricity, it’s water. If it’s not water, it’s waste.” Nowhere are the problems more pressing than in Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city and commercial capital. The city has been ruled by a series of unstable coalitions, with 10 changes of mayor in the past decade. Authorities have admitted to a 220bn rand (£9.9bn) infrastructure spending backlog. It is estimated that a quarter of the water bought by the municipal water body Johannesburg Water is lost to leaks. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/nov/01/anger-over-johannesburgs-run-down-infrastructure-elections

📊🗳 It's election week in South Africa On Wednesday, South Africans will be voting in municipal elections. Here is what we expect: - The ANC will see its lowest overall result since 1994 - The ANC will be dethroned by the DA as the biggest party in the Johannesburg metro, but it will need to form a messy coalition to govern - The DA is at risk of losing their majority in the Cape Town metro - Support for the ANC has collapsed in the Durban metro, the MK Party is expected to win the lion's share of the vote. @SouthAfricaReports

Taxi violence sparks fears some Cape Town residents will be unable to vote https://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/elections-2026/2026-10-31-taxi-violence-sparks-fears-some-cape-town-residents-will-be-unable-to-vote/

Starlink saved stranded sailor off South African coast – MyBroadband https://mybroadband.co.za/news/broadband/675146-starlink-saved-stranded-sailor-off-south-african-coast.html

Johannesburg needs to repair 12,000 km of pipes, but it only managed 17 km last year – Daily Investor https://dailyinvestor.com/south-africa/162555/johannesburg-needs-to-repair-12000-km-of-pipes-last-year-it-managed-17-km/

Its starting to look beautiful👌

Week without water brings Joburg residents onto the streets | GroundUp https://groundup.org.za/article/week-without-water-brings-joburg-residents-onto-the-streets/