Newcastle Local Municipality elections

The Newcastle Local Municipality council consists of sixty-seven members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Thirty-four councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in thirty-four wards, while the remaining thirty-three are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. In the election of 1 November 2021 the African National Congress (ANC) lost its majority, winning a plurality of 22 seats. As of July 2024, the party has since lost five seats in by-elections, dropping to 17 seats, with the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) earning a plurality of 23 seats.^[1]

Results

The following table shows the composition of the council after past elections.

Event	ACDP	ANC	DA	EFF	FF+	IFP	NFP	Other	Total
2000 election	1	20	11	-	-	27	-	2	61
2006 election	1	27	6	-	1	20	-	6	61
2011 election	0	33	5	-	0	12	5	6	61
2016 election	0	41	6	5	1	11	-	3	67
2021 election	-	22	5	8	1	18	1	12	67

December 2000 election

The following table shows the results of the 2000 election.^[2]


Party		Ward			List			Total seats
Party		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats	Total seats
	Inkatha Freedom Party	20,367	43.95	22	20,083	43.27	5	27
	African National Congress	15,387	33.20	5	15,323	33.01	15	20
	Democratic Alliance	7,753	16.73	4	8,490	18.29	7	11
	Azanian People's Organisation	711	1.53	0	823	1.77	1	1
	Independent candidates	1,437	3.10	0				0
	African Christian Democratic Party	243	0.52	0	655	1.41	1	1
	Pan Africanist Congress of Azania	260	0.56	0	495	1.07	1	1
	Minority Front	183	0.39	0	547	1.18	0	0
Total		46,341	100.00	31	46,416	100.00	30	61

Valid votes		46,341	97.47		46,416	97.51
Invalid/blank votes		1,202	2.53		1,186	2.49
Total votes		47,543	100.00		47,602	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		115,803	41.06		115,803	41.11

March 2006 election

The following table shows the results of the 2006 election.^[3]


Party		Ward			List			Total seats
Party		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats	Total seats
	African National Congress	24,822	43.71	21	25,511	44.90	6	27
	Inkatha Freedom Party	17,909	31.53	6	18,107	31.87	14	20
	Democratic Alliance	5,095	8.97	3	5,377	9.46	3	6
	National Democratic Convention	3,771	6.64	1	3,170	5.58	3	4
	Royal Loyal Progress	1,218	2.14	0	1,289	2.27	1	1
	African Christian Democratic Party	753	1.33	0	997	1.75	1	1
	Independent candidates	1,163	2.05	0				0
	Independent Democrats	576	1.01	0	577	1.02	1	1
	Freedom Front Plus	459	0.81	0	508	0.89	1	1
	Pan Africanist Congress of Azania	452	0.80	0	506	0.89	0	0
	Azanian People's Organisation	374	0.66	0	517	0.91	0	0
	Minority Front	202	0.36	0	253	0.45	0	0
Total		56,794	100.00	31	56,812	100.00	30	61

Valid votes		56,794	97.61		56,812	97.51
Invalid/blank votes		1,391	2.39		1,448	2.49
Total votes		58,185	100.00		58,260	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		126,693	45.93		126,693	45.99

May 2011 election

The following table shows the results of the 2011 election.^[4]


Party		Ward			List			Total seats
Party		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats	Total seats
	African National Congress	45,786	52.22	28	47,625	54.31	5	33
	Inkatha Freedom Party	16,415	18.72	1	16,397	18.70	11	12
	National Freedom Party	7,802	8.90	0	7,313	8.34	5	5
	Democratic Alliance	6,466	7.38	2	6,992	7.97	3	5
	Azanian People's Organisation	3,908	4.46	0	3,624	4.13	3	3
	Royal Loyal Progress	2,046	2.33	0	1,878	2.14	2	2
	Federal Congress	1,716	1.96	0	1,575	1.80	1	1
	Independent candidates	1,105	1.26	0				0
	Freedom Front Plus	603	0.69	0	408	0.47	0	0
	Minority Front	334	0.38	0	560	0.64	0	0
	Great Kongress of South Africa	448	0.51	0	350	0.40	0	0
	Congress of the People	312	0.36	0	329	0.38	0	0
	African Christian Democratic Party	322	0.37	0	310	0.35	0	0
	United Democratic Movement	340	0.39	0	261	0.30	0	0
	South African Determined Volunteers	68	0.08	0	66	0.08	0	0
Total		87,671	100.00	31	87,688	100.00	30	61

Valid votes		87,671	98.10		87,688	98.15
Invalid/blank votes		1,700	1.90		1,655	1.85
Total votes		89,371	100.00		89,343	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		149,136	59.93		149,136	59.91

August 2016 election

The following table shows the results of the 2016 election.^[5]


Party		Ward			List			Total seats
Party		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats	Total seats
	African National Congress	63,352	59.87	32	66,149	62.52	9	41
	Inkatha Freedom Party	18,210	17.21	0	17,298	16.35	11	11
	Democratic Alliance	9,587	9.06	2	9,993	9.45	4	6
	Economic Freedom Fighters	8,074	7.63	0	8,128	7.68	5	5
	Royal Loyal Progress	1,522	1.44	0	1,437	1.36	1	1
	Independent candidates	2,379	2.25	0				0
	Azanian People's Organisation	813	0.77	0	801	0.76	1	1
	People's Revolutionary Movement	721	0.68	0	850	0.80	1	1
	Freedom Front Plus	774	0.73	0	764	0.72	1	1
	African Christian Democratic Party	376	0.36	0	381	0.36	0	0
Total		105,808	100.00	34	105,801	100.00	33	67

Valid votes		105,808	98.28		105,801	98.31
Invalid/blank votes		1,849	1.72		1,821	1.69
Total votes		107,657	100.00		107,622	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		183,353	58.72		183,353	58.70

August 2016 to November 2021 by-elections

In a by-election held on 5 April 2017, a ward previously held by the ANC was won by an independent candidate.^[6] Council composition was reconfigured as seen below:

Party		Ward	PR list	Total
	African National Congress	31	9	40
	Inkatha Freedom Party	0	11	11
	DA	2	4	6
	Economic Freedom Fighters	0	5	5
	AZAPO	0	1	1
	VF+	0	1	1
	Independent	1	–	1
	People's Revolutionary Movement	0	1	1
	Royal Loyal Progress	0	1	1
Total		34	33	67

November 2021 election

The following table shows the results of the 2021 election.^[7]


Party		Ward			List			Total seats
Party		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats	Total seats
	African National Congress	25,019	30.84	21	25,658	31.76	1	22
	Inkatha Freedom Party	19,518	24.06	6	21,712	26.88	12	18
	Economic Freedom Fighters	9,746	12.01	0	9,775	12.10	8	8
	Team Sugar South Africa	8,167	10.07	2	8,541	10.57	5	7
	Democratic Alliance	6,146	7.58	4	6,109	7.56	1	5
	ActionSA	2,772	3.42	1	2,898	3.59	2	3
	Independent candidates	3,855	4.75	0				0
	Freedom Front Plus	990	1.22	0	978	1.21	1	1
	National Freedom Party	846	1.04	0	966	1.20	1	1
	Patriotic Alliance	614	0.76	0	560	0.69	1	1
	African Transformation Movement	467	0.58	0	499	0.62	1	1
	Abantu Batho Congress	526	0.65	0	356	0.44	0	0
	People's Revolutionary Movement	442	0.54	0	385	0.48	0	0
	African Freedom Revolution	397	0.49	0	404	0.50	0	0
	Royal Loyal Progress	364	0.45	0	339	0.42	0	0
	KZN Independence	154	0.19	0	447	0.55	0	0
	Al Jama-ah	165	0.20	0	165	0.20	0	0
	Azanian People's Organisation	132	0.16	0	181	0.22	0	0
	Congress of the People	136	0.17	0	142	0.18	0	0
	Community Freedom Party	175	0.22	0	92	0.11	0	0
	African People's Movement	141	0.17	0	111	0.14	0	0
	Pan Africanist Congress of Azania	90	0.11	0	157	0.19	0	0
	African Mantungwa Community	110	0.14	0	130	0.16	0	0
	African People's Convention	105	0.13	0	73	0.09	0	0
	National Democratic Convention	30	0.04	0	41	0.05	0	0
	Black First Land First	9	0.01	0	37	0.05	0	0
	Bolsheviks Party of South Africa	1	0.00	0	24	0.03	0	0
Total		81,117	100.00	34	80,780	100.00	33	67

Valid votes		81,117	97.90		80,780	97.89
Invalid/blank votes		1,740	2.10		1,741	2.11
Total votes		82,857	100.00		82,521	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		181,563	45.64		181,563	45.45

The IFP took control of the municipality by entering into agreement with the DA, Team Sugar and other parties.^[8]^[9]

By-elections from November 2021

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period since the election in November 2021.^[10]

Date	Ward
15 February 2023^[11]	31	Team Sugar South Africa	Team Sugar South Africa
14 February 2024^[12]	11	African National Congress	Inkatha Freedom Party
13 March 2024^[13]	12	African National Congress	Inkatha Freedom Party
13 March 2024^[13]	19	African National Congress	Inkatha Freedom Party
13 March 2024^[13]	23	African National Congress	Inkatha Freedom Party
19 June 2024^[14]	5	African National Congress	Democratic Alliance
17 July 2024^[1]	28	Team Sugar South Africa	Inkatha Freedom Party

After the three March by-elections, and the February by-election, the IFP had won four seats from the ANC, leaving them as the largest party, while in June 2024 the DA won a seat off the ANC. The following shows the composition of the council after the July 2024 by-election:^[1]

Party	Ward	List	Total
Inkatha Freedom Party	11	12	23
African National Congress	16	1	17
Economic Freedom Fighters	0	8	8
Team Sugar South Africa	1	5	6
Democratic Alliance	5	1	6
ActionSA	1	2	3
Freedom Front Plus	0	1	1
National Freedom Party	0	1	1
Patriotic Alliance	0	1	1
African Transformation Movement	0	1	1
Total	34	33	67

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Sussman, Wayne (18 July 2024). "IFP deals bitter setback for Team Sugar, MK in KZN wards". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
^ "Election Result Table for LGE2000 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
^ "Election Result Table for LGE2006 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
^ "Election Result Table for LGE2011 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
^ "Election Result Table for LGE2016 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
^ "Results of the Municipal By-Elections held on 05 April 2017". Electoral Commission of South Africa. 6 April 2017. furthermore an independent candidate won a seat previously held by the African National Congress
^ "Election Result Table for LGE2021 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
^ "ANC-IFP co-operation in KZN on the brink". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
^ "ANC is desperate says analyst after ruling party suffered heavy losses in key municipalities in KZN". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
^ "Municipal By-elections results". Electoral Commission of South Africa. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
^ Sussman, Wayne (16 February 2023). "FEBRUARY BY-ELECTIONS: Team Sugar deals bittersweet blow to ANC as small local parties offer blueprint for staying relevant". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
^ Sussman, Wayne (15 February 2024). "MK party snatches votes from ANC in second Zululand scare". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c Sussman, Wayne (14 March 2024). "IFP trounces ANC again in KZN, sweeping three wards". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
^ Sussman, Wayne (20 June 2024). "IFP builds on strong KZN poll showing with more solid wins". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 20 June 2024.

[dm_2024_07-1] Sussman, Wayne (18 July 2024). "IFP deals bitter setback for Team Sugar, MK in KZN wards". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 18 July 2024.

[2] "Election Result Table for LGE2000 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.

[3] "Election Result Table for LGE2006 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.

[4] "Election Result Table for LGE2011 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.

[5] "Election Result Table for LGE2016 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.

[6] "Results of the Municipal By-Elections held on 05 April 2017". Electoral Commission of South Africa. 6 April 2017. furthermore an independent candidate won a seat previously held by the African National Congress

[7] "Election Result Table for LGE2021 — Newcastle". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 28 November 2021.

[8] "ANC-IFP co-operation in KZN on the brink". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 2 December 2021.

[9] "ANC is desperate says analyst after ruling party suffered heavy losses in key municipalities in KZN". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 2 December 2021.

[mbe-10] "Municipal By-elections results". Electoral Commission of South Africa. Retrieved 18 February 2023.

[11] Sussman, Wayne (16 February 2023). "FEBRUARY BY-ELECTIONS: Team Sugar deals bittersweet blow to ANC as small local parties offer blueprint for staying relevant". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 17 February 2023.

[dm_2024_02-12] Sussman, Wayne (15 February 2024). "MK party snatches votes from ANC in second Zululand scare". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 15 February 2024.

[dm_2024_03-13] Sussman, Wayne (14 March 2024). "IFP trounces ANC again in KZN, sweeping three wards". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 14 March 2024.

[dm_2024_06-14] Sussman, Wayne (20 June 2024). "IFP builds on strong KZN poll showing with more solid wins". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 20 June 2024.

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