The Afrobarometer found that one in six South Africans (17%) believed that members of their local government council “often” or “always” listened to ordinary people, while two-thirds (67%) believed that citizens were never listened to.
While political parties intensify their campaigns ahead of the local government elections in November, residents in various communities have expressed little faith that votes would bring about desired outcomes.
This comes in the wake of the Afrobarometer’s recent findings, which revealed that only 17% of South Africans felt heard by their councillors, and 27% rated their performance positively.
The Afrobarometer - a research network that conducts public attitude surveys on democracy, governance, economic conditions, and related issues in more than 35 African countries - also found that 26% of South Africans interviewed trusted their local leaders, and 95% believed that their councillors were corrupt.
The Afrobarometer team in South Africa, led by the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, interviewed 1,600 adult citizens between June 28 and July 19, 2026.
