South Africans are told that young people are politically apathetic. The first voter-registration weekend for the local government elections tells a different story. The Electoral Commission recorded almost 2,9 million registration transactions. Of 477 174 new registrations, 379 767, or 80%, came from people aged 16 to 29. Young citizens did not ignore the invitation. They responded to it.

That is encouraging, but it is not yet a democratic breakthrough. Registration is an entry on the voters’ roll. It is not a promise to vote, an endorsement of any party or proof that trust has been restored. Young South Africans have taken the first step. Political parties must now give them a reason to take the next one.

Registration Is Not Trust

The warning is clear. Turnout among registered voters aged 20 to 29 in local elections fell from 49% in 2011 to 35% in 2021. The political climate has also deteriorated. Research commissioned by the IEC shows that support for democracy as the preferred form of government has fallen to 36%, while trust in local government has dropped to about 18%.

This should not be dismissed as laziness or ingratitude. What is called youth apathy is often political disappointment. Young people have grown up hearing that democracy gives citizens power, while watching councillors become inaccessible, services decline and election promises disappear after polling day. When voting appears disconnected from results, withdrawal can seem rational.

The Constitution nevertheless makes local government relevant to their lives. Section 152 requires municipalities to provide democratic and accountable government, ensure sustainable services, promote social and economic development and encourage community involvement. These are not distant ideals. They concern the water in a household, the streetlight outside it, the safety of a neighbourhood and the conditions in which a young person searches for work.

A Generation Asking For Results

The economic reality is severe. In the first quarter of 2026, unemployment stood at 60,9% among people aged 15 to 24 and 40,6% among those aged 25 to 34. More than four in ten young people aged 15 to 34 were not in employment, education or training. Afrobarometer found that 63% of young South Africans identify unemployment as the most important problem and 96% believe government is performing badly in creating jobs.

Municipalities cannot solve unemployment alone. They do, however, determine whether local economies can function. They approve land-use applications, maintain roads, provide electricity and water, regulate trading, manage public spaces and procure billions of rand in goods and services. A municipality that delays permits, neglects infrastructure or directs contracts through patronage does not merely inconvenience residents. It closes doors to work and enterprise.

So, parties should stop speaking about “the youth vote” as though young people form a single marketing category. They are citizens with different beliefs but remarkably practical questions. Who is the ward candidate? What has that person done in the community? How will the municipality support apprenticeships, small businesses and safe trading spaces? When will broken infrastructure be repaired? How will corruption be prevented? What happens if the councillor fails?

Earn The Vote

Every party contesting these elections should publish its ward candidates early, together with their qualifications, community record and any relevant disciplinary or criminal findings. Candidate selection must reward competence and local credibility, not factional loyalty. Voters cannot hold accountable people they barely know.

Manifestos should then be translated into ward-level commitments. General promises to create jobs or improve services are too easy to make and too difficult to measure. Parties should identify a small number of funded priorities for each municipality, provide timelines and state who will be responsible. Where a promise depends on provincial or national cooperation, that should be said honestly.

There should also be a youth test for municipal budgets. Councils should show, in plain language, how spending will expand apprenticeships, repair infrastructure near schools and transport routes, open procurement to emerging businesses, improve digital access and create safer public spaces. This does not require a separate programme for every young resident. It requires municipalities to consider whether their decisions widen opportunity or quietly block it.

Finally, accountability cannot end with the campaign. Councillors should hold public meetings, publish quarterly ward scorecards and report openly on complaints, projects and spending. Civil society, universities, schools and the media should host candidate debates and help first-time voters understand what municipalities can do. The IEC, meanwhile, should continue registration and voter education in campuses, TVET colleges, townships and informal settlements.

Young South Africans have not proved that they will vote. They have proved something more immediate: they are willing to engage when the door is opened. Parties should not answer that willingness with slogans, celebrity rallies or another list of promises without costs and deadlines.

The responsibility now shifts. Young citizens have registered. Those seeking power must show that local democracy can produce capable representatives, functioning services and honest government. Their votes are available, yes, but they are not owed. They must be earned.

For more on this topic read: FW DE KLERK FOUNDATION RELEASES “WHOSE RESPONSIBILITY IS IT ANYWAY?” – A NEW DIGITAL GUIDE TO THE 2026 LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS – https://fwdeklerk.org/fw-de-klerk-foundation-releases-whose-responsibility-is-it-anyway-a-new-digital-guide-to-the-2026-local-government-elections/