Becoming a politician in South Africa is not about gaining power or status. It is about answering a call to public service, to represent your community, and to help shape the future of your town, city, or nation. At its heart, politics is the business of making decisions that affect people’s lives: where roads are built, whether taps run with clean water, how children are educated, and who gets access to healthcare.
Unlike professions such as medicine or law, there is no single degree or licence that qualifies you to become a politician. There is no “politician’s exam.” Instead, the path is shaped by political parties, the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC), and ultimately, the voters themselves. Anyone who is a registered voter can theoretically stand for office. However, the reality is that political parties—which control access to their candidate lists—have their own rigorous requirements.
This guide will walk you through every step: from the constitutional requirements to join a party, to the vetting and selection processes used by major parties, to what happens once you are elected and how much you can expect to earn.
How To Become A Politician In South Africa: The Definitive Guide
Step 1: Meeting the Constitutional Requirements
Before you can become a politician at any level, you must meet the basic legal requirements set out in South Africa’s Constitution. These are the non-negotiable entry barriers.
For the National Assembly (Parliament) and Provincial Legislatures, you must be a South African citizen, be at least 18 years old, be registered as a voter on the IEC’s voters’ roll, and not be declared ineligible by the Independent Electoral Commission due to a mental health condition or an insolvency declaration. Importantly, you cannot have been convicted of an offence and sentenced to more than 12 months in prison without the option of a fine, unless more than five years have passed since the sentence was completed.
For Local Government (Municipal Councillor), the requirements are similar: you must be a South African citizen, at least 18 years old, registered to vote in the municipality where you wish to stand, and have a clean record regarding any convictions for crimes involving dishonesty or contravening the Municipal Finance Management Act.
These are the minimum legal requirements. However, meeting them does not guarantee you a spot on any ballot. Political parties have their own, far stricter criteria.
Step 2: Joining a Political Party
In South Africa’s party-list proportional representation system, you almost always need to be a member of a political party to get onto a ballot. Independent candidates can now stand for election following a Constitutional Court ruling, but the logistical and financial hurdles are significant. For most aspiring politicians, joining a party is the first active step.
How to Join a Party
Most major political parties have moved their membership registration processes online. For example, the MK Party launched a new online membership registration system that allows supporters to join from anywhere with an internet connection. The process typically involves visiting the party’s membership portal, creating an account by providing your ID number, contact information, and address, paying a membership fee (the MK Party charges R20 for 24 months of membership), and then receiving a digital membership card.
Other parties have similar processes, though some still require in-person registration at local branch offices. The key is to become a member in good standing. Your membership history, including how long you have been a member and your level of activity at branch level, matters enormously when you later apply to become a candidate.
The Importance of Branch-Level Activity
Political parties do not simply pluck candidates from the sky. They select from their membership base. This means that joining a party and then waiting for a phone call is not a strategy. You must become active at the branch level. Attend branch meetings. Volunteer for party events. Help with voter registration drives. Join a party committee.
When parties evaluate candidates, they look for proven commitment and grassroots support. A member who has served as a branch secretary or ward chairperson is far more likely to be selected than a member who only pays their annual fee and never shows up.
Step 3: Understanding the Candidate Selection Process
Each political party has its own internal process for selecting candidates to represent it in elections. These processes are often lengthy, competitive, and rigorous. Understanding how they work is essential.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) Process
The DA prides itself on having one of the most intensive and merit-based candidate selection processes in South African politics. The process consists of multiple comprehensive steps, taking up to nine months or longer to complete. It includes candidate nomination, initial screening based on your CV, candidate selection involving interviews and written tests, and finally, a selection panel that determines your rank on the candidate list.
The DA uses a points-based ranking system that rewards merit, community engagement, education, and party service. Adjustments are made to ensure diversity and fair representation of gender, age, race, and disability. For the 2026 Local Government Elections, the DA opened applications for councillor candidates with a closing date of 31 May 2025.
The African National Congress (ANC) Process
The ANC has significantly tightened its candidacy guidelines ahead of recent elections. The party’s electoral committee, chaired by Kgalema Motlanthe, has introduced mandatory minimum qualifications. Candidates must possess a matric certificate or demonstrate the capacity and experience to make a constructive contribution within the municipal council.
Furthermore, the ANC has resolved that at least 70% of its candidates for local government elections must have prior experience in any sphere of government. This includes having served as successful public representatives, members of the executive, or as officials employed in government at any time in the last 31 years.
Notably, mayoral candidates for metros and secondary cities are now handled directly by the party’s national officials to ensure that people with expertise and the requisite qualifications are selected for those positions.
The Unite for Change Process
Newer political formations like Unite for Change have adopted transparent, multi-stage selection processes designed to attract fresh talent. Their five-stage process includes: an online application where aspiring candidates complete a standardised form and pay a modest application fee; thorough vetting to confirm eligibility; a community endorsement stage requiring 200 signatures from voters in the wards where candidates seek to stand; a points-based ranking system that rewards merit, community engagement, education, and party service; and finally, public announcement of approved candidates.
Step 4: Educational and Experience Requirements
While there is no legal requirement that politicians have tertiary qualifications, political parties increasingly demand them. The days of the purely “born leader” without formal education are fading.
Minimum Educational Standards
The ANC now requires a matric certificate as a minimum qualification for its candidates. The EFF has stated that a matric certificate is the minimum requirement to form part of its list for Parliament, and the party also aims to include at least 10 PhD holders on its parliamentary list.
The DA does not have a blanket degree requirement—its leader John Steenhuisen has only a matric qualification—but the party’s merit-based selection process heavily weights education and professional experience. Most successful DA candidates hold tertiary qualifications.
What Qualifications Matter
When parties evaluate candidates, certain qualifications carry more weight than others. Law degrees are valued for legislators who will draft and scrutinise laws. Finance and economics qualifications are prized for those serving on finance committees or as mayors managing budgets. Public administration and governance qualifications are directly relevant to overseeing government departments.
Looking at South Africa’s political leaders provides a useful benchmark. ActionSA president Herman Mashaba holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Unisa. EFF president Julius Malema completed a diploma in youth development and holds a BA in Communications and African languages as well as a BA Honours in Philosophy. EFF deputy president Floyd Shivambu earned a master’s degree in Political Sciences from Wits.
ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa holds a law degree from Unisa, while ANC chairperson Gwede Mantashe has a master’s degree from Wits, a BCom from Unisa, a BCom Honours, and an MBA. DA chief whip Siviwe Gwarube possesses a BA in Law, Politics, and Philosophy from Rhodes University and an honours in Political Science and Government from the University of the Western Cape.
The message is clear: while a degree is not legally required, serious political aspirants should pursue tertiary education, ideally in fields relevant to governance, law, finance, or public administration.
Step 5: The Vetting Process
Before you are allowed to represent a party, you will undergo a thorough vetting process. Parties want to avoid candidates with criminal records, questionable financial histories, or damaging scandals that could embarrass the party.
The vetting typically includes criminal record checks, credit history and insolvency checks, verification of your educational qualifications, scrutiny of your social media history for problematic posts, and reference checks with previous employers and community leaders.
Some parties conduct their vetting internally, while others hire external forensic firms. Be prepared to disclose everything. A hidden problem discovered after you are selected is far worse than a disclosed problem that is addressed upfront.
Step 6: Getting on the Ballot – The Role of the IEC
Once parties have selected their candidates, they submit candidate lists to the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). For the National Assembly and provincial legislatures, elections use a closed-list proportional representation system. You vote for a party, not a person. The party determines the order of its candidates on the list. If the party wins 10 seats in a province, the first 10 names on its list go to the legislature. Your position on the list determines whether you get a seat. Being number 20 on a list for a party that only wins 15 seats means you do not get in.
For local government elections, the system is mixed. Some councillors are elected from ward constituencies (similar to a constituency system), while others are elected from party lists using proportional representation. Standing as a ward candidate requires you to live in that ward and have strong local support, as voters choose a person, not just a party.
Step 7: The Election Campaign
Once you are on the ballot as a candidate, the hard work of campaigning begins. Campaigning involves door-to-door canvassing where you introduce yourself to voters in your ward or community and listen to their concerns. You will attend community meetings, public debates, and local events. You must distribute campaign materials such as pamphlets, posters, and social media content. Phone banking and voter outreach become daily activities.
Campaigning requires money. Parties typically provide some support to their candidates, but most candidates also need to raise funds personally or through community supporters. The application fees charged by parties often go toward a “candidate starter pack” to help with campaign materials and community engagement.
Step 8: Becoming a Councillor or MP – What Happens After Election Day
If you are elected, you become a public representative. The job differs significantly depending on the level of government.
Local Government (Municipal Councillor)
As a councillor, your responsibilities include legislative work contributing to municipal council decisions and processes, serving on council committees that oversee local government functions, community leadership engaging with your local community and organising initiatives, ward representation advocating for residents and businesses within the council, and local issue management resolving service delivery challenges such as broken taps, potholes, and refuse collection.
Councillors are expected to have a visible presence in their wards. You will hold regular office hours, attend community meetings, and respond to resident complaints. It is a demanding job that often requires working evenings and weekends.
Provincial Legislature (MPL)
Members of Provincial Legislatures (MPLs) oversee the provincial government’s departments, including education, health, roads, and social development. They scrutinise legislation passed by the provincial executive and hold MECs (Members of the Executive Council) accountable through committee work.
National Parliament (MP)
Members of Parliament (MPs) serve in either the National Assembly or the National Council of Provinces (NCOP). Their work includes debating and passing national legislation, serving on portfolio committees that oversee specific government departments (such as Health, Finance, or Police), holding ministers accountable through parliamentary questions, and representing the interests of their constituents at the national level.
Step 9: Remuneration – What Politicians Earn
Public office comes with a salary. The Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers recommends annual increases, which the President approves.
National Government Salaries
The salary structure for national politicians is as follows:
The President earns over R3.5 million per year.
The Deputy President earns R3.28 million per year (up R120,000).
Cabinet Ministers earn R2.79 million per year (up R102,000).
Deputy Ministers earn R2.29 million per year.
The National Assembly Speaker and NCOP Chair earn R3.28 million per year.
Leaders of opposition parties: The leader of the main opposition (MK Party) earns R1.86 million per year. Other minority party leaders, including EFF leader Julius Malema, earn R1.56 million per year.
Parliamentary committee chairs earn R1.73 million per year.
Ordinary Members of Parliament (backbenchers) earn R1.32 million per year (up R48,000).
Permanent NCOP delegates also earn R1.32 million per year.
Provincial Government Salaries (Current Data)
Premiers earn R2.64 million per year (up R104,000).
Members of Executive Councils (MECs) earn R2.31 million per year (up R91,000).
Provincial Legislature Speakers earn R2.30 million per year.
Deputy Speakers earn R1.86 million per year.
Ordinary Members of Provincial Legislatures earn R1.28 million per year.
These salaries are considered full-time employment. Politicians are expected to dedicate themselves entirely to their public duties and are generally not permitted to hold other paid employment.
Step 10: The Unwritten Rules – Skills and Personal Qualities
Beyond the formal requirements, successful politicians possess certain personal qualities and skills. Resilience is essential because politics is brutal. You will be criticised publicly, sometimes unfairly. You will lose arguments, and possibly elections. The ability to persevere is non-negotiable.
Communication skills are paramount. You must be able to speak persuasively in public, think on your feet in debates, write clearly, and listen actively to constituents. Integrity matters because trust is your most valuable currency. Once voters perceive you as dishonest or self-serving, you rarely recover.
Emotional intelligence allows you to read rooms, manage conflicts, and build coalitions. Administrative competence means you must understand how government works. A politician who does not know how to get a pothole fixed or how a budget is passed is an ineffective politician.
Step 11: Starting Your Own Political Party
For those who find existing parties unsuitable, it is possible to start your own political party. The IEC currently has over 600 political parties registered. To register a new party, you must submit a completed application form to the IEC, provide the party’s constitution, submit a deed of foundation signed by 1,000 registered voters, provide the party’s name and logo, and pay a registration fee of R5,000.
Once registered, your party must meet the same requirements as any other party to contest elections. You will need to submit candidate lists, pay election deposits, and compete for votes. This route requires significant resources, organisational capacity, and name recognition. Most successful new parties are formed by breakaways from existing parties who bring established followings.
Step-by-Step Summary Checklist
Here is your roadmap to becoming a politician in South Africa:
Phase 1: Foundation
Ensure you are a South African citizen, at least 18 years old, and registered to vote with the IEC.
Clear any potential disqualifications (criminal record, insolvency).
Phase 2: Party Membership
Join a political party whose values align with yours.
Pay your membership fees (typically R20-R100 per year depending on the party).
Become active at branch level. Attend meetings, volunteer, and build relationships.
Phase 3: Candidate Application
When the party opens candidate applications, submit your CV and motivation.
Complete any required written tests or interviews.
Undergo the party’s vetting process (criminal, credit, qualification checks).
If required, gather community endorsements (signatures from voters in your target ward).
Phase 4: Selection and ElectionSuccessfully rank on the party’s candidate list.
Campaign if you are a ward candidate or in a high-list position.
Get elected by voters.
Phase 5: Service
Take up your position as a councillor, MPL, or MP.
Serve your community or constituency with integrity and diligence.
Renew your party membership and continue building your track record for future elections.
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Conclusion
Becoming a politician in South Africa is a challenging but achievable goal. There is no single qualification that guarantees entry, but a combination of party activism, relevant education, community involvement, and personal integrity will open doors.
Start at the local level. Join a party. Show up consistently. Build a reputation as someone who gets things done. When candidate applications open, you will be ready. It may take years of volunteering and branch-level service before you see a ballot paper with your name on it. That is normal. Most successful politicians started exactly this way: not at the top, but in the branches, the community meetings, and the door-to-door campaigns that form the backbone of South African democracy.