South Africa
EFF eyes leadership shake-up in Bojanala to recover lost votes─── KEKELETSO MOSEBETSI 13:05 Thu, 05 Feb 2026
The EFF has signalled a renewed focus on the Bojanala region in North West as part of its strategy to reclaim votes lost during the 2024 provincial elections.
In the 2024 provincial polls, the EFF secured 153,743 votes in North West, 17.37% of the total. The decline has raised concerns about the effectiveness of the party’s leadership structures in some regions.
Addressing the media on Wednesday (4/2), EFF president Julius Malema acknowledged the losses and vowed to significantly improve the party’s performance in the province ahead of the upcoming local government elections.
“The problem is not in North West, the problem is in an area called Bojanala. I think in 2024 we lost 26,000 votes, which we had before, just in Bojanala alone, which means there is a lot of thuggery amongst the EFF, which takes place there, and we need to nip it on the butt, and if releasing some people for opening the gates will do so.
“When you lose votes of such magnitude in a province where it’s supposed to be your feeder province, it means there is a lot of gatekeeping internally happening in the EFF.”
The party is considering drastic leadership changes in the region, he said, including the possible removal of all current leaders in Bojanala. The EFF may place the region under the direct leadership of the party’s secretary general, Marshall Dlamini, to stabilise structures and rebuild support.
Malema believed the party would recover the lost votes and even surpass previous results, emphasising Bojanala is a strategic region where the EFF should not be experiencing electoral decline.
But NWU political analyst André Duvenhage cautioned the task ahead would not be easy. Retaining the party’s position in the province would be challenging, particularly as some North West EFF leaders are facing court cases, while the party may also struggle with capacity and financial constraints.
The Red Berets appear to be a party on the decline nationally, Duvenhage added. Recovering lost votes in North West and other provinces in the upcoming local government elections may prove difficult.
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