EKURHULENI, Thursday 1 October 2026 — People’s Movement for Change mayoral candidate Nhongo Solo was attacked and beaten at gunpoint at her Ekurhuleni home after three men allegedly forced their way inside, restrained her and another person and fled with electronic devices and bank cards, the party has said.
The attack occurred as Solo campaigns to lead one of South Africa’s most closely contested metropolitan municipalities in the 4 November local government elections.
The PMC has raised the possibility that the attack was politically motivated and called for candidates to be allowed to campaign without intimidation or violence.
No political motive has, however, been established.
Three men allegedly entered Solo’s home
According to the PMC, three men had been seen around Solo’s property before they forced their way into the home.
The party said the attackers demanded Solo’s cellphone and banking information.
Solo and another person at the property were then tied up.
The attackers allegedly fled with two cellphones, a laptop and bank cards.
SABC News reported the attack on Wednesday afternoon after receiving confirmation from the PMC.
Further reporting later on Wednesday and Thursday independently repeated the details supplied by the party.
The available reports do not indicate that investigators have identified the attackers or established why Solo was targeted.
PMC raises possibility of political motive
The PMC said it believed the attack may have been politically motivated.
The party called on political parties and their supporters to observe the Electoral Code of Conduct and ensure that candidates are able to campaign without intimidation or violence.
That assertion remains the party’s assessment rather than an established finding.
The circumstances described by the PMC also include demands for Solo’s banking details and the theft of phones, a laptop and bank cards.
There is therefore not yet sufficient evidence publicly available to determine whether the attack was politically motivated, an armed robbery, or involved another motive.
No allegation of involvement by another political party should be inferred from the PMC’s statement.
Solo is PMC’s sole Ekurhuleni PR candidate
Solo is listed as the People’s Movement for Change’s candidate in Ekurhuleni ahead of the November election.
Published candidate information for the metro shows the PMC with Solo as its single proportional-representation candidate.
She previously contested Ward 82 in Ekurhuleni as an independent candidate during the 2021 local government elections.
At the time, Solo described herself as a community activist and former Agang SA provincial youth leader and provincial deputy secretary.
She has also been involved in youth-development initiatives through Abatsha Force of Change, an organisation she co-founded.
Solo was identified earlier this year as one of the organisers of an initiative in Tsakane aimed at helping matriculants access information about universities, TVET colleges, bursaries, apprenticeships and mental-health support.
Attack comes during competitive Ekurhuleni campaign
The incident comes during an increasingly competitive campaign for control of Ekurhuleni.
The metro is one of the major councils where no single party is widely expected to secure an outright majority, making smaller parties and proportional-representation votes potentially significant in determining the composition of the next council.
The IEC-certified contest has attracted 67 party lists in Ekurhuleni.
Among the prominent mayoral candidates are ActionSA’s Xolani Khumalo and candidates representing the ANC, DA, EFF, MK Party and smaller organisations.
The large field means the distribution of even a relatively small number of proportional-representation seats could become relevant if the election again produces a hung council.
Ekurhuleni has been governed through shifting coalition arrangements since the ANC lost its outright majority in 2016.
Electoral Code prohibits intimidation
South Africa’s Electoral Code of Conduct requires parties and candidates to promote conditions conducive to free and fair elections.
Among other provisions, the electoral framework prohibits the use or threat of violence to influence political participation and protects the ability of candidates, parties and voters to participate freely in election activity.
The PMC invoked those principles in responding to Solo’s attack.
Whether the Electoral Code is relevant to the incident itself will depend on investigators establishing a connection between the attack and Solo’s political activities.
At present, no such connection has been confirmed.
The immediate focus will therefore be on the criminal investigation and whether police identify the attackers or establish a motive.
With voting scheduled for 4 November, any evidence that a mayoral candidate was deliberately targeted because of her participation in the election would raise a separate electoral-security concern requiring attention from law-enforcement authorities and the IEC.
