The uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party named former City of Tshwane director Annie Matime as its mayoral candidate for Tshwane on 12 September 2026, as the party consolidates its metro leadership ahead of the 4 November local government elections. Matime will face Democratic Alliance (DA) candidate Cilliers Brink and the incumbent ActionSA mayor Nasiphi Moya for control of the capital.

Candidate Brings Decades Of Municipal Governance

According to an MK Party statement, Matime is “an accomplished public-sector professional, community leader and business administrator with over two decades of experience in municipal governance and economic development.” She holds an MBA as well as honours qualifications in geography and theology, and has extensive leadership experience across civic, community, church and development organisations.

“This combination of professional expertise, leadership and community commitment positions her as a capable and experienced choice to lead Tshwane under the banner of the MK Party,” the statement added. The nomination fills one of two remaining metro slots that were left vacant when the party unveiled other mayoral candidates—Bongani Baloyi for Johannesburg, Thulani Shongwe for Ekurhuleni, and the now-replaced Zandile Hlophe-Mkhwanazi for eThekwini—in Durban roughly two weeks earlier.

EThekwini Turmoil And Candidate List Probe

The Tshwane unveiling came just three days after party leader Jacob Zuma dissolved the MK Party’s Presidential Task Team for the second time in six weeks and replaced eThekwini mayoral candidate Hlophe-Mkhwanazi with Apostle Mxolisi Phakathi, the party’s national chairperson. Zuma simultaneously removed Hlophe-Mkhwanazi and senior official Sibonelo Maphumulo from the National Party Liaison Committee, which handles electoral matters with the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), and ordered an investigation into allegations that properly vetted councillor candidates were removed from IEC submission lists and replaced.

“There is no place for manipulation, political gatekeeping or the abuse of organisational processes,” Zuma said through the party statement. The probe, national spokesperson Sifiso Mahlangu confirmed, “will seek to establish the full facts and ensure that any persons found responsible for wrongdoing are held accountable.” The candidate swap came after the IEC’s candidate nomination deadline of 28 August, meaning the originally submitted names cannot be altered—potentially leaving Hlophe-Mkhwanazi’s name on the ballot despite the leadership change. Cape Town remains the only metro where the MK Party has yet to name a mayoral candidate, with final IEC candidate lists expected to be published on 16 September.