Polls leading up to the vote had the main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA), which controls Cape Town, trouncing the ANC in the capital Pretoria, economic powerhouse Johannesburg and seaside Port Elizabeth.
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As votes continued to stream in, the ANC said it was expecting its numbers to rise.
The results, which were expected to be concluded on Friday, open up a new era of local coalition politics in South Africa.
The ANC won 62 percent support in the last national elections in 2014, and now controls Tshwane, Johannesburg and Nelson Mandela Bay outright.
In Johannesburg, the opposition party led with 44 percent to 40 percent for the ANC, with 31 percent of the votes tallied, while in Nelson Mandela Bay it led with 50 percent versus 39 percent, with nearly three-quarters of votes in.
“We’ve shown some incredible growth in these elections and we’re quite excited about that”, said Maimane, whose party has promised to help create jobs and improve social services.
DA maintained its firm grip on both Cape Town and the Western Cape.
It is, however, winning some support from voters frustrated about inequality in country where black people make up 80 percent of the 54 million population, yet most of the economy in terms of ownership of land and companies remains in the hands of white people, who account for about 8 percent of the population.
With 13.7 million, or about 90 percent of the estimate of proportional representation votes cast nationally in the election counted as of 12:20 p.m. on Friday, the ANC had 55 percent of the total support, followed by the DA with 26.4 percent, according to the commission.
South Africa holds local government elections on Wednesday in what looks likely to become a referendum on President Jacob Zuma’s scandal-plagued leadership and on an economy forecast to stagnate this year. The EFF describes itself as “a radical, leftist, anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist movement” and its leaders have repeatedly criticized President Zuma for corruption and use of force against protesters.
The ANC failed to win Zuma’s hometown of Nkandla in Kwa-Zulu Natal province, a personal blow to Zuma, where the Inkatha Freedom Party retained its hold on the region.
The DA was projected to sweep the major metropolitan areas, which were seen as key battleground states, in an election deemed as a litmus test for the ruling party.
Many ANC supporters are switching allegiances to the Democratic Alliance, bolstering its attempts to attract black voters and shake off its image as a party that chiefly serves the interests of the white community.
ANC has met public anger as well as over the electronic tolling system and the imposition of Thoko Didiza as candidate for the capital city – Pretoria.
Nkemeleng Mashishi of Atteridgeville, said, ” My children, husband and I belong to ANC but this time, we agreed as a family to donate our votes to either DA or EFF”.
But he was sticking with the ruling party for now, despite the travails of its leader.
Zuma has said he would repay some of the funds spent on his home and rejected criticism of his conduct.
ANC chief whip Jackson Mthembu said the party was chastened by the results.
Clearly the ANC still commands huge support across the country, but that support is waning.
Voters are losing patience with Zuma, who rattled investors in December by changing finance ministers twice in a week, sending the rand currency plummeting.
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Contesting its first local poll after bursting onto the scene in the 2014 general election, the far-left EFF may emerge in the influential role of kingmaker.
