‘Highest potential’ for deadly election as political killings mount.
An increase in the number of councillors being killed ahead of the November 4 Local Government Elections has raised fears that they are being targeted and killed due to fierce competition over access to municipal resources, state tenders, and well-paid public jobs.
The killing of three ANC-linked figures in Knysna within 24 hours has renewed concerns about political violence and the contest for power at municipal level.
Other political parties have also seen their public representative being killed, including DA candidate councillor, Sinovuyo Dyokwe, who was shot dead in Dunoon, Cape Town in June 2026 after allegations that she did not pay extortionists, and the ANC's Sibusiso Khwela, the eThekwini Ward 17 councillor, was gunned down in his office in Klaarwater, Durban.
Earlier this month, police apprehended suspects linked to the murders of Tshwane Ward 10 ANC councillor Thabang Masemola and EFF member Aaron Makola. Masemola was killed in Mamelodi East on July 8, 2025. Makola, 51, was found dead in Delmas with a gunshot wound on June 30, 2026. He had been reported missing for several days.
