United Democratic Movement

• WaterLook after water systems and find and reduce leaks.
• Electricity and power cutsProvide reliable power and keep council (Council The group of elected people who make decisions for a municipality. They pass its budget and choose the mayor.) power networks safe.
• RubbishCollect rubbish regularly.
• Toilets and sewageLook after toilet and sewer systems.
• RoadsLook after council roads, stormwater drains and street lights.

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• Building housesRelease well-located land for housing where possible and give out homes fairly.
• Informal settlementsUpgrade informal settlements with basic services.
• Title deedsSecure residents' rights to land and homes, and ownership where possible.

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• CrimeImprove street lighting in high-risk areas and add CCTV where practical.
• Metro policeBuild up council policing where this applies.
• Local jobsStart 'green battalions' to fight rural soil erosion and create local jobs.
• Business and growthSupport small firms, cooperatives and informal traders, and favour South African-owned firms.

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• CorruptionEnforce zero tolerance for corruption, with consequences for wrongdoing.
• Audit resultsAct on Auditor-General findings.
• Wasteful spendingReduce wasteful spending and council buying that breaks the rules.
• CoalitionsInsist that coalition (Coalition Parties that agree to run a council together, usually because none has more than half the seats alone. Together they choose the mayor.) deals are written down and made public.
• BudgetsSet realistic, funded budgets and spend budgets and grants on time.

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• We found no source showing a UDM mayor (Mayor The leader of the municipality. Councillors choose this person, not voters. So the seats each party wins decide who can lead.), deputy mayor, speaker or mayoral committee member in any council (Council The group of elected people who make decisions for a municipality. They pass its budget and choose the mayor.) in 2025-2026. The speaker runs council meetings, and mayoral committee members are the mayor's team.
• The UDM's largest group of councillors (Councillor A person elected to make decisions for a municipality, such as the budget and who the mayor is. Each one holds one seat.) is in King Sabata Dalindyebo (KSD). It won 11 of 73 seats there in 2021, and the ANC holds 48. The UDM sits in opposition there, with Raymond Knock as UDM whip. The whip organises the party's (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.) councillors in the council. In July 2026 the UDM nominated Bongani Ndlobongela for KSD mayor, but he turned it down. In September 2026 the party named Mlimandlela Ndamase as its candidate for KSD mayor in the election.

Parties (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.) must declare some donations. This applies when one donor gives them more than R200 000 in total in a financial year. A financial year runs from April to March. The limit used to be R100 000. The President raised it in Proclamation Notice R. 275 of 2025. This was published in the Government Gazette on 18 August 2025. So the July to September 2025 report uses R100 000 for donations before that date. A smaller donation is declared once the donor's total for the year passes the limit. The IEC says the Political Funding Act covers each registered (Registered Your name is on the voters' roll. Registration for this election closed on 7 August 2026.) party, even one with no seats (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.) in Parliament (Parliament South Africa's national law-makers, in Cape Town. It has two parts, the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces.) or a provincial legislature. So the IEC's reports cover each party listed here. Smaller gifts, membership fees and public money are not in these reports. So no rows means no donor passed the limit in these reports. It does not mean the party got no money. The IEC's yearly report shows each party's total of smaller gifts, without names. These are the donations the party told the IEC about, as the IEC published them. We do not compare parties. Checked 20 October 2026.

• “The UDM reaffirms that peace in the Middle East will only be achieved through justice and respect for human rights.”

  Party statement, 10 October 2025

  Nqabayomzi Kwankwa, the UDM deputy president, said this in a party statement. He says Israeli forces held six South Africans who sailed to Gaza with aid, and Israel must answer for how they were treated. The UDM backs South Africa's case at the International Court of Justice, the top UN court. In that case South Africa says Israel broke the world treaty against genocide. The UDM wants South Africa to keep leading this court process.

• “we stand here in support of the Special Appropriations Adjustment. Why? Simply because we believe in the just course where South Africa is actually fighting for the freedom of the people of Palestine.”

  In Parliament, 5 December 2024

  Nqabayomzi Kwankwa, a UDM MP (MP (Member of Parliament) A person who sits in Parliament, which makes South Africa's laws. They are not chosen in this local election.), spoke in Parliament (Parliament South Africa's national law-makers, in Cape Town. It has two parts, the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces.) on a bill that moved money to pay for the ICJ case against Israel. He said the UDM backed it because South Africa is fighting for Palestinians' freedom. The bill also held money for other things.

• “United Democratic Movement (UDM) leader, Bantu Holomisa has commended the South African government following yesterday’s decision by the International Court of Justice.”

  News report, 27 January 2024

  SABC News reported that UDM leader Bantu Holomisa praised the government. This came after the ICJ, the UN's top court, gave its first order in South Africa's case against Israel.

• “AYES – 248: (ANC – 200; EFF – 43; ATM – 2; NFP – 1; PAC – 1; Al’Jama-ah – 1). NOES – 91: (DA – 67; IFP – 11; FF Plus – 9; ACDP – 4).”

  Vote in Parliament, 21 November 2023

  Parliament voted on asking the government to close Israel's embassy (Embassy A country's main office in another country. It speaks for its own government there.) and cut ties until a ceasefire. The motion passed, 248 votes to 91. The UDM had MPs in Parliament then, but the count lists no UDM MP on either side. The record does not say why.

• “Unfortunately, it comes during a year where Israel’s war on Gaza has turned Gaza into a graveyard for children with the death toll of at least 5 500 children since 07 October.”

  In Parliament, 21 November 2023

  On the day of that vote, UDM MP Nqabayomzi Kwankwa spoke in Parliament about World Children's Day. He said Israel's war had turned Gaza into "a graveyard for children".

• “IFP MP Mkhuleko Hlengwa and UDM Chief Whip Nqabayomzi Kwankwa, however, said South Africa had failed to act.”

  News report, 3 March 2022

  South Africa chose not to vote either way on a UN resolution against the attack on Ukraine. Daily Maverick reported that UDM chief whip Nqabayomzi Kwankwa said South Africa had failed to act.

We found nothing. Checked 27 October 2026.

• “we should not be deterred or allow ourselves to be bullied by the erratic and imperialistic US government.”

  In Parliament, 23 July 2025

  Kwankwa spoke when Parliament voted on the foreign affairs budget. He said South Africa must not let the US government bully it. He called that government "erratic and imperialistic".

• “It is therefore our sincere wish that these relations continue to be strengthened.”

  Party statement, date not given

  Bantu Holomisa, the UDM president, said this when he met the US ambassador (Ambassador The top person a country sends to speak for it in another country.), Leo Brent Bozell III. He said ties between the two countries were under strain. He spoke of claims of genocide and land grabs in South Africa, and said the ambassador could check them himself. He reminded him that the US supported South Africa's struggle for freedom. He suggested a joint body where both governments meet to solve problems.

• “we call for the resumption of a Binational Commission on the same scale and structure as the historic Al Gore/Thabo Mbeki Binational Commission.”

  Party statement, date not given

  Bantu Holomisa, the UDM president, said this before President Ramaphosa visited the United States. He says tension grew over claims of genocide and land taken without payment, which he says lack proof. He wants the two governments to bring back a Binational Commission, a joint body where they work together. It would cover the economy, security, education and the environment. He says an earlier one helped build trade.

• Party statement, 8 January 2026

  EWN, a news outlet, reported that the United States captured Venezuela's president, Nicolás Maduro. South Africa's government asked the UN to act. The UDM's deputy president, Nqabayomzi Kwankwa, said every country's right to rule itself should always be defended. He faulted the ANC for ignoring Maduro's human rights record, but said it did not make his removal by the US right. The report does not say what the UDM wants the government to do.

• “If Brics is to mean anything to us, we must stop acting like junior members in an ideological fan club.”

  In Parliament, 23 July 2025

  Nqabayomzi Kwankwa, a UDM MP, said this when Parliament voted on the foreign affairs budget. BRICS is a group of countries including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Kwankwa says ties with BRICS should bring real trade, building projects and business chances, not just shared ideas. He says South Africa should not let the US push it around over Russia and China. He wants the government to speak with one voice.