The race to become the DA's mayoral candidate for Johannesburg is still wide open, despite the party already having chosen its candidates for the other major metros. Gauteng leader John Moodey said on Friday that the internal process to select the Johannesburg mayoral candidate will start soon, and that he wanted it finalised by the middle of next month.DA leaders have what they call "the big five" municipalities they believe they must win next year if the party is going to seriously challenge the ruling ANC's grip on power.Athol Trollip will take on the ANC's Danny Jordaan in Nelson Mandela Bay and Solly Msimanga will carry the blue baton in Pretoria, while Patricia de Lille is seen as a shoo-in in Cape Town.story_article_left1Johannesburg and the Tlokwe council in Potchefstroom complete the DA's "big five" targets."Although Johannesburg and Tshwane will be the main focus, we will also deploy much resources to Midvaal, which we govern already, its neighbours, Emfuleni and Lesedi, and Mogale City on the West Rand, which we think is winnable," Moodey said.On the Gauteng provincial ballot during last year's general elections, the ANC won only 52% of the vote, followed by the DA with 32%, the EFF with 10%, the IFP with 1% and a bunch of parties hovering around the 0.5% mark.This means a swing of only 2% could bring a coalition government to Johannesburg, South Africa's most glittering municipal prize.Moodey did not want to name any potential candidates, but discussions with DA sources in Gauteng showed the race to be wide open, with six possible contenders: businessman Herman Mashaba; Wits academic Rabelani Dagada; Gauteng MPL Khume Ramulifho; and MPs Makashule Gana, Heinrich Volmink and Gordon Mackay.Gana, who earlier this year ran for the federal chairman's post, said he would do what was in the best interests of the party."I remain a disciplined member of the DA and if the organisation feels that the prospects of winning Johannesburg with me as mayoral candidate [are high], then I will align myself to the goals of the organisation."mini_story_image_vright1He hadn't thought "that deep" about the issue, but as a Johannesburg resident for 11 years, it was "not a task I would not be able to fulfil", he said."I have lived there, it is where I do my politics."Dagada was forthright, saying: "If I get nominated I will accept. I already have a manifesto." His detailed manifesto of 39 pages is titled "Vuka Jozi - Wake up, Johannesburg".Dagada said his work in government, academia, business and nonprofit organisations meant that he could "add a lot of value"."I feel very strongly that if we win Johannesburg and we win Tshwane, there is no doubt that the DA will win Gauteng in 2019," Dagada said.Volmink said it was "early days yet, but yes, I am considering putting my name forward. I believe that Johannesburg, which is our country's economic hub, should not face the chronic service delivery crises it currently experiences."On Friday, Ramulifho, who is the party's Gauteng South regional chairman and spokesman on education, claimed he had not yet given the matter any thought.Mackay, the DA's spokesman on energy, said he had been approached but had decided not to run."I believe all positions in the DA must be hotly contested and that Johannesburg will produce an excellent candidate," he said.Mashaba said he had been contacted, but had decided to rather remain a DA activist and fundraiser, and not to enter elective politics at this stage...