Nomzamo Khosa · Elevate Finance Partners · 10 November 2026 · 8 minute read

What the 2026 local election turnout says, why it’s a money question, and five ways to follow what your municipality does with your rates and taxes.

Last week South Africans voted in the local government elections, and on Sunday the Electoral Commission announced the final turnout: 52%, up from 45.9% in 2021. I’m not going to tell you who to vote for, because that isn’t why I’m here. I’m here because the money your municipality collects and spends is yours too, and stewardship doesn’t stop at your own bank account.

A Personal Note

I’ve been turning this one over all week, and I’ll admit I felt a little conflicted about how to write it. Two things were true at once. I was glad that more people took part than last time. And I paused at how many eligible adults still sit outside the process altogether.

So I’m going to stay with what I know. I know that what we’ve been entrusted with is bigger than a salary and a savings account. It includes our time, our attention and our voice. I know our provision comes from God, and that no parliament, budget or election determines it. And I know that being faithful with what we’ve been given has never meant looking away from the places our money goes.

“But seek the welfare of the city… for in its welfare you will find your welfare.” Jeremiah 29:7 (ESV)

What Happened

The Electoral Commission declared the 2026 local government elections free and fair, with national turnout of 52%. That’s up 6.1 percentage points from 45.9% in 2021. A record 29.2 million people were registered, up from about 26.2 million in 2021.

Two other numbers sit beside those:

Registration isn’t universal. Estimates of how many adults are eligible vary, but one analysis puts registration at about 64% of the eligible population, and in July the Commission said more than 11 million eligible people weren’t registered.
Turnout is a share of registered voters, not of all eligible adults. By that arithmetic (estimates vary, and this is my own calculation), between a third and about two-fifths of eligible adults voted.

Young adults are the widest gap. In June, reporting put the share of eligible 18-year-olds not yet registered at about 70%.

What does this mean? Only that decisions are made by the people who take part, and that’s a statement about how elections work, not about any party or any person.

Is Not Voting a Sensible Choice? Two Honest Sides

People reach that choice for reasons that deserve respect, and others disagree for reasons that also deserve respect.

Reasons some people give for not voting: a belief that nothing changes, distrust of politicians, no party that feels right, and everyday barriers. Analysts note that voters tend to be older and better off, and that a fixed address, free time and travel money all make registering and voting easier.

Reasons others give for taking part: local government runs water, refuse, roads and rates, elections are the main formal way to hold it accountable, and a low turnout can leave decisions to a smaller group.

Neither side has to settle it here. What’s worth saying is that voting isn’t the only way to take part, and being disappointed isn’t the same as being disconnected. There are other doors, and the rest of this post opens five of them.

Why It’s a Money Question

Your municipality collects property rates and service charges, and it spends them on water and sanitation, refuse, roads and, in many areas, the distribution of electricity. You see it on your monthly bill. What you don’t always see is how well it’s being managed.

The Auditor-General audits every municipality each year. The 2024-25 results, released in June, found:

Only 39 of 257 municipalities, about 15%, received a clean audit, meaning no material problems in their financial statements, performance reporting or compliance with the law. None of the eight metros did.
About 45% of municipalities adopted unfunded budgets, meaning spending plans that weren’t backed by realistic revenue.
Municipalities collectively incurred R36.05 billion in unauthorised expenditure, spread across 177 of them.

These are findings about municipalities across the board, not about any party. They’re the starting point for a very ordinary question: What does mine do with what I pay?

Five Ways to Follow the Money

None of these needs a party, a placard or a lot of time. Each is a way of testing for yourself.

Read your own municipal bill. Know what you’re charged for, what the rates are based on, and when you were last billed incorrectly. Queries in writing leave a record.
Look up your municipality’s audit outcome. The Auditor-General publishes municipal results at agsa.co.za. It takes a few minutes to find yours.
Read the budget and the Integrated Development Plan (IDP). Municipalities publish both for public comment each year, and that comment window is a formal way to be heard.
Use National Treasury’s Municipal Money website (municipalmoney.gov.za) to see how your municipality spends and how it compares to others.
Attend a ward committee or public meeting. Ask a question, and ask for the answer in writing.

If you do only one, make it the first. It starts with your own numbers, which is where stewardship starts anyway.

A Small Number With Local Consequences: AGOA

The trade announcement earlier this month belongs in this conversation, and not only because it’s news. It’s an example of how a national number and a local reality can look very different.

The Trade Minister’s figures put AGOA exports at about US$1.7 billion in 2025, down from US$4 billion in 2024. That’s roughly 1% of South Africa’s total goods exports, and about 10% of exports to the US, down from 28% the year before. At about R16 to R17 to the dollar, my own conversion puts US$1.7 billion at roughly R27 to R29 billion. About 89% of exports to the US already enter on ordinary terms, and the relationship is far wider than AGOA: bilateral trade reached US$28.8 billion in 2025, and more than 600 American companies operate in South Africa, supporting about 134,600 jobs, according to the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition.

Economists say the direct effect on overall growth is likely to be small. PSG’s chief economist, Johann Els, noted that it still matters a great deal to the businesses and workers involved, and that the bigger concern may be the signal it sends to investors.

The effect isn’t spread evenly. The Citrus Growers’ Association says exports to the US sustain at least 35,000 farm-level jobs in the Western and Northern Cape, where some orchards were planted specifically for American buyers, and that it’s too early to say how many would be affected. Cosatu estimates that up to 10,000 jobs could be lost. Without AGOA, citrus would face ordinary US duties of generally 1.5 to 2.5 US cents a kilogram, plus a further 12.5% tariff on varieties other than oranges.

An economist at the Bureau for Economic Research put the gap well: even if exports elsewhere more than made up the value, that would offer little immediate relief to a seasonal worker on a citrus farm.

That’s the link to everything above. When a local employer shrinks, households in that town can find rates and service bills harder to pay, and the municipality that depends on those payments can feel it too. The national story and the local one aren’t separate, which is one more reason to know your own numbers and to follow what your municipality does with what it collects.

Faithful, Not Frantic, in Public Life Too

Scripture doesn’t separate faith from the places we live. It tells us to seek the welfare of the city we’re in, and it connects the health of a people to the character of how they live:

“Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.” Proverbs 14:34 (ESV)

It asks for prayer for those in authority, for kings and all who are in high positions (1 Timothy 2:1-2). And it describes what’s required of each of us in plain words:

“…do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8 (ESV)

None of this is a campaign. It’s a posture. Pray for those who lead, pay attention to what’s done with what we contribute, and take part in the ways open to us. Our provision doesn’t depend on any council or any outcome, and our responsibility isn’t cancelled by that. Dependence and diligence travel together.

Start With Your Own Numbers

Following your municipality begins with knowing what you pay and what’s left. That’s what Elevate My Finance was built for. The 360° Financial Check-Up shows where you stand, the Budget Planner lays out your commitments, municipal bills included, and the Debt Freedom calculator shows what existing debt is costing. It doesn’t steer you towards any fund or product. It lets you test your own numbers before you decide anything.

I’ve opened 30 free lifetime spots for early users, and there are still spots open. Start your 360° Financial Check-Up and claim yours here: checkup.elevatefinancepartners.online

Talk It Through

If something here has stirred up a question about your own finances, a Financial Clarity Consultation is a conversation for drawing your thoughts out and seeing where the numbers sit. To book, WhatsApp 073 509 8750.

A Closing Word

Pray, pay attention, participate. In that order, and in whatever way is open to you.

Reduce what you owe. Grow what you own.

Blessings & Abundance,

Nomzamo

Elevate Finance Partners

NCA for F&Is · RE5 · COB 1/2/3 · National Certificate: Banking Services Advice

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Nomzamo Khosa is a financial educator, not a financial advisor. The content shared on Elevate Finance Partners is intended for general educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, tax, or investment advice. This post is non-partisan and does not recommend any political party or candidate. Figures are drawn from the Electoral Commission of South Africa’s final declaration of 8 November 2026, the Auditor-General’s 2024-25 municipal audit outcomes, and statements from the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition on AGOA, as reported in the press. Calculations marked as my own are estimates. For personalised guidance, WhatsApp 073 509 8750.

Stewardship Local Government Faith and Finance