The Democratic Alliance received more than R104 million in declared political donations during the first quarter of the 2026/27 financial year, accounting for approximately 89% of all compliant donations reported to the Electoral Commission.

The Electoral Commission published the latest political funding declarations on Thursday, 27 August 2026, covering donations made between 1 April and 30 June 2026.

Four political parties declared compliant donations totalling R116,784,185.25. Of this amount, R111.5 million consisted of monetary donations, while approximately R5.28 million was provided through in-kind contributions.

The declarations come as political parties intensify preparations for South Africa’s Local Government Elections, scheduled for 4 November 2026.

DA receives R104 million

The DA declared R104,034,185.25 during the reporting period, comprising R98,750,004 in monetary donations and R5,284,181.25 in in-kind contributions.

Its biggest declared donors included:

• Fynbos Ekwiteit (Pty) Ltd: R30 million
• Fynbos Kapitaal (Pty) Ltd: R25 million
• D Barnes: R10 million
• R Slack Diamond: R5 million
• J Slack Jell: R5 million
• Martin Moshal: R5 million
• Lombard Consolidated (Pty) Ltd: R5 million
• Kerry Road Trust: R2.5 million
• Predator Securities (Pty) Ltd: R2 million

The party also declared several major in-kind contributions covering advertising, staffing, legal services and campaign-related assets.

These included approximately R2.78 million from the Voices of South Africa Foundation NPC, R1.16 million from the Make a Difference Trust and R815,891.08 from the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

Mr and Mrs T Madilonga contributed two vehicles valued at R528,655 for the DA’s use.

ActionSA declares R5.5 million

ActionSA reported donations totalling R5.5 million.

The party received R5 million from Martin Moshal and R500,000 from Siyaya Free To Air TV (Pty) Ltd.

However, the Electoral Commission identified a compliance problem involving the Siyaya donation. Although ActionSA submitted its declaration, the corresponding declaration from the donor remained outstanding.

The Commission said it had issued the necessary direction to address the non-compliance.

Labour Party receives R5 million from AMCU

The Labour Party of South Africa declared a R5 million monetary donation from the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union.

The party was formed and launched by AMCU in early 2024. According to the Commission, the donation was made on 30 June 2026.

RISE Mzansi declared R2.25 million, comprising R1.25 million from Ungani Investments and R1 million from Captrust Investments.

The Commission said both RISE Mzansi donations complied fully with the requirements of the Political Funding Act.

IEC flags ANC donation declarations

The Electoral Commission also identified several compliance deficiencies involving donations reported by or connected to the African National Congress.

These included the failure of both parties to a transaction to submit declarations, missing proof of transactions, inadequate supporting documents and late reporting.

The donations currently undergoing compliance processes total R15.27 million. They comprise R270,000 from Captrust Investment and R15 million from the Batho Batho Trust.

These amounts were not included in the R116.78 million total because the relevant disclosure and verification requirements had not been satisfied.

The Commission nevertheless released the information in the interest of transparency while the regulatory processes continue.

Late ANC donations also under scrutiny

The ANC also reported several donations from the 2025/26 financial year after the prescribed reporting periods.

These included:

• R501,230.29 in-kind contribution from Friedrich Ebert Stiftung
• R10 million from Botho Botho Commercial Enterprises
• R500,000 from Valumax Projects
• R15 million in-kind contribution from the Batho Batho Trust
• R15 million monetary donation from the Batho Batho Trust

The Commission said these declarations failed compliance tests relating to late reporting, missing proof of transactions and failures to satisfy dual-disclosure requirements.

The donations were consequently excluded from the total of compliant declarations.

The ANC has been issued with a direction under section 15 of the Political Funding Act to address the identified deficiencies.

Failure to comply could lead to the withholding of future allocations from the Political Representatives Fund and the Multi-Party Democracy Fund. Continued non-compliance could also result in a referral to the Electoral Court for possible sanctions.

The Commission stressed that the compliance concerns should not be interpreted as a finding that the underlying donations were unlawful.

At this stage, the issues relate to whether the donations were reported accurately, on time and with the required supporting information.

Political funding expected to surge before elections

The first-quarter declarations were made under the revised political funding framework, which increased the disclosure threshold from R100,000 to R200,000. The maximum amount that a single donor may contribute to a political party annually was also increased from R15 million to R30 million.

The Electoral Commission expects political fundraising and campaign spending to rise substantially as the 4 November municipal elections approach.

It said it would closely monitor high-value donations, late declarations, discrepancies between donors and political parties, third-party expenditure, in-kind contributions, foreign funding and proof of transactions.

“Credible and transparent political funding remains essential to maintaining public confidence in the electoral process,” the Commission said.

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