Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) president Julius Malema has rejected suggestions that the Democratic Alliance (DA) stole votes from his party, arguing that voters chose to support the DA partly because of the African National Congress’s (ANC) decision to enter into a government of national unity (GNU) with it.
Speaking during a media briefing at the Electoral Commission of South Africa’s Results Operations Centre in Midrand on Saturday, Malema said the ANC’s cooperation with the DA after the 2024 national and provincial elections had changed how some voters viewed the two parties.
“There is no DA that stole votes. Our people voted for DA. DA did not steal any votes from the EFF,” Malema said.
He argued that voters questioned why they should not support the DA at the ballot box when the ANC itself was willing to work with the party and give it positions in government.
“Our people decided to go in bed with the enemy because the ANC said to them in 2024, it is nice to sleep with the enemy,” he said.
Malema said the ANC’s decision to work with the DA had effectively legitimised the party in the eyes of some voters, creating consequences for the EFF during the 2026 Local Government Elections.
The EFF’s national support declined to 6.26% in the latest elections, compared with 10.31% in the 2021 Local Government Elections. The party received approximately 1.8 million votes, down from 2.4 million in 2021.
Malema acknowledged the decline, saying the party needed to confront the setback honestly. He nevertheless pointed to an increase in the number of wards won by the EFF, from 19 in 2021 to 37 in 2026.
His comments place responsibility for at least part of the EFF’s electoral decline on the ANC’s decision to govern alongside the DA, rather than on the DA taking votes from the EFF.
