Elections Must be a Celebration of Democracy, not a Contest of Intolerance

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA | Monday, 2 November 2026 - Elections are the hallmark and lifeblood of any enduring democracy. They represent the sovereign will of the people and embody the freedoms for which our forebears fought, multitudes sacrificed, and many paid the ultimate price.

As South Africans prepare to participate in Wednesday’s local government elections, we must remind ourselves that our democracy was neither freely given nor cheaply attained. It was born of extraordinary courage, sacrifice and an unwavering commitment to the ideals of freedom, equality, justice and human dignity.

We owe it to those who came before us, and to generations yet unborn, to safeguard this hard-won democratic inheritance.

Political differences must never become a licence for hostility, intimidation or violence. Our constitutional democracy demands that we respect one another's right to hold divergent views, support different political parties and exercise the freedom of political choice without fear, coercion or prejudice.

We call upon political parties, candidates, supporters and communities to conduct themselves with dignity, restraint and an abiding respect for the rule of law.

Electoral competition must never diminish our shared humanity or undermine our collective responsibility to preserve peace and social cohesion.

We equally call upon the Electoral Commission, law enforcement agencies and all electoral stakeholders to discharge their responsibilities with impartiality, professionalism and integrity, ensuring that every eligible voter can exercise their democratic right freely and safely.

Democracy does not demand that we agree with one another. It demands that we respect one another's right to disagree.

Whatever the outcome of Wednesday's elections, let us remember that political opponents are not enemies, that electoral defeat is not the end of democracy, and that victory confers a responsibility to govern in the interests of all.

The true measure of our democratic maturity lies not merely in how we cast our votes, but in how we treat one another before, during and after the ballots have been counted.

Let peace prevail. Let tolerance triumph. Let the will of the people be respected.

Our democracy is a sacred inheritance. We dare not betray the sacrifices upon which it was built.

Let's make our democracy work!

ENDS.