2024 Gauteng provincial election

The 2024 Gauteng provincial election was held on 29 May 2024, concurrently with the 2024 South African general election, to elect the 73 members of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature.

The African National Congress (ANC), led by current Premier Panyaza Lesufi, lost its majority in the Provincial Legislature for the first time since the end of apartheid in 1994. The main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), led by Solly Msimanga, gained two seats despite a very small swing against the party. With a margin of just 7.32% between the ANC and the DA, Gauteng was the closest province in the country.

Gauteng was a highly-contested province, as it is the most populous province of South Africa, as well as the de facto economic hub of South Africa. It is also home to Johannesburg, the most populous city in South Africa.

Background
The 2019 provincial election was won by the ruling ANC, but with a reduced seat total of only 37 seats, the threshold for a majority. The DA underperformed and lost support in this election, losing a total of three seats, which only gave the party 20 seats in the provincial legislature. The EFF grew its support and won three additional seats. The FF+ gained two seats, while the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) retained its sole seat. The African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) returned to the provincial legislature by winning one seat.

Aftermath
The ANC lost its majority for the first time in the provincial party's history, losing 9 seats in the legislature. The DA won 2 more seats and the PA won 2 seats, while the VF+ lost one seat. Finally, the new MK, ActionSA, Rise Mzansi and BOSA parties all won seats, and the EFF, IFP and ACDP all retained the same share of seats as the previous election. As a result, no party won overall control of the legislature, forcing consideration of a coalition government. On 15 June, the new legislature was sworn in and held elections of the Premier, Deputy Premier, heads of committees and provincial delegates to the National Council of Provinces. Lesufi was re-elected premier, and began coalition negotiations with other parties for forming the Executive Council. President Cyril Ramaphosa was reported to have ordered Lesufi to include the DA in cabinet negotiations, but Lesufi publicly rejected the claim. On 3 July 2024, the DA walked away from talks with Lesufi and will sit in opposition.