Morero Snubbed As Mayoral Race Looms
Johannesburg Mayor, Dada Morero, has been completely frozen out of the African National Congress (ANC) shortlist for the upcoming mayoral race. The party has chosen to entirely omit the sitting mayor from its pool of candidates ahead of the local government elections on 1 November 2026.
This blatant exclusion unfolds as the party implements an unprecedented national strategy to consider non-members for key metropolitan mayoralties. However, while the organisation widens its net elsewhere, Gauteng leaders have flatly refused to consider Morero for another term.
The political downfall of the incumbent mayor is deeply rooted in widespread public outrage over governance shortfalls in the city. Persistent, large-scale service delivery failures during his executive tenure have severely eroded both his public standing and internal party support.
His crumbling influence was further exposed by his abrupt removal as the convenor of the provincial Local Government Intervention team.
Having only recently been appointed to lead the municipal accountability unit, he was swiftly stripped of the role and replaced by another Provincial Task Team (PTT) member, Nathi Congwane.
Morero has since been relegated to lead a less influential unit of the PTT that handles legislature and governance.
Meanwhile, regional party structures have heavily consolidated their backing behind Loyiso Masuku, the current Greater Johannesburg regional chairperson.
“The regional executive committee resolved that regional office bearers should deliberate on names that possess unblemished public reputations,” according to leaked party information, as published by the Mail & Guardian.
Masuku, who successfully climbed back to the top of the regional political ladder, currently enjoys fierce support within local branches. This political ascension has left the current mayor completely isolated without a viable path to retain the executive seat.
The provincial leadership is determined to field a formidable candidate capable of surviving an exceptionally brutal electoral duel which will see Democratic Alliance (DA) heavyweight, Helen Zille, as well as Action SA leader and former Joburg mayor, Herman Mashaba, also contesting the hot seat.
To counter these high-profile opponents, the party is searching for candidates with untarnished social standing and deep administrative discipline.
Consequently, the regional leadership has forwarded a selective shortlist to Luthuli House for the final panel evaluation. The final pool includes ANC Integrity Committee head, Reverend Frank Chikane, who is widely respected as an unblemished, principled anti-apartheid party veteran. Chikane recently cemented his reputation within the party by orchestrating the clean removal of compromised figures like Sisi Tolashe.
Former Deputy Finance Minister, Jabu Moleketi, is also under serious consideration to bring macroeconomic credibility to the metro.
One prominent outsider on the list is celebrated corporate executive, Chichi Maponya, the daughter of the late legendary Soweto tycoon, while former leader of Operation Dudula, Nhlanhla Lux’s name has also been bandied about.
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