Witzenberg Local Municipality elections
# Witzenberg Local Municipality elections

The Witzenberg Local Municipality consists of twenty-three members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Twelve councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in twelve wards, while the remaining eleven are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received.

No party has ever received a majority at a local government election, with the African National Congress (ANC) receiving a plurality in 2006 and the Democratic Alliance (DA) in 2011, 2016 and 2021.

## Results

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

| Event | ANC | COPE | DA | ICO | Other | Total |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2000 election | 9 | — | 9 | — | 3 | 21 |
| 2002 floor-crossing | 12 | — | 1 | — | 8 | 21 |
| 2004 floor-crossing | 15 | — | 2 | — | 4 | 21 |
| 2006 election | 10 | — | 6 | — | 5 | 21 |
| 2007 floor-crossing | 9 | — | 7 | — | 5 | 21 |
| 2011 election | 8 | 1 | 10 | — | 4 | 23 |
| 2016 election | 8 | 1 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 23 |
| 2021 election | 7 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 23 |
| 2021 election (recount) | 7 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 23 |

## December 2000 election

The following table shows the results of the 2000 election.

| Party | Party | Ward | Ward | Ward | List | List | List | Total seats |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | African National Congress | 7,567 | 43.48 | 5 | 7,508 | 43.12 | 4 | 9 |
| | Democratic Alliance | 7,106 | 40.83 | 6 | 7,408 | 42.55 | 3 | 9 |
| | Witzenberg Onafhanklike Vereniging | 1,649 | 9.48 | 0 | 1,552 | 8.91 | 2 | 2 |
| | Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 496 | 2.85 | 0 | 664 | 3.81 | 1 | 1 |
| | United Democratic Movement | 206 | 1.18 | 0 | 279 | 1.60 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent candidates | 379 | 2.18 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| Total | Total | 17,403 | 100.00 | 11 | 17,411 | 100.00 | 10 | 21 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 17,403 | 98.24 | | 17,411 | 98.33 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 311 | 1.76 | | 295 | 1.67 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 17,714 | 100.00 | | 17,706 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 31,190 | 56.79 | | 31,190 | 56.77 | | |

### October 2002 floor crossing

In terms of the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution and the judgment of the Constitutional Court in United Democratic Movement v President of the Republic of South Africa and Others, in the period from 8–22 October 2002 councillors had the opportunity to cross the floor to a different political party without losing their seats. In the Witzenberg council the Democratic Alliance (DA) lost seven councillors to the New National Party (NNP), which had formerly been part of the DA, and one councillor to the African National Congress (ANC). One councillor from the "Witzenberg Onafhanklike Vereniging" and one from the Pan Africanist Congress also crossed to the ANC.

| Party | Seats before | Net change | Seats after |
| - | - | - | - |
| African National Congress | 9 | 3 | 12 |
| New National Party | – | 7 | 7 |
| Democratic Alliance | 9 | 8 | 1 |
| Witzenberg Onafhanklike Vereniging | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 1 | 1 | 0 |

### September 2004 floor crossing

Another floor-crossing period occurred on 1–15 September 2004. Two ANC councillors, the remaining DA councillor and the remaining "Witzenberg Onafhanklike Vereniging" councillor all crossed to the Independent Democrats (ID). Five of the NNP councillors crossed to the ANC, and two to the DA.

| Party | Seats before | Net change | Seats after |
| - | - | - | - |
| African National Congress | 12 | 3 | 15 |
| Independent Democrats | — | 4 | 4 |
| Democratic Alliance | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| New National Party | 7 | 7 | 0 |
| Witzenberg Onafhanklike Vereniging | 1 | 1 | 0 |

### By-elections from September 2004 to February 2006

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period between the floor crossing periods in September 2004 and the election in March 2006.

| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 24 October 2004 | 8 | | Independent Democrats | | African National Congress |
| 7 September 2005 | 3 | | Independent Democrats | | African National Congress |

## March 2006 election

The following table shows the results of the 2006 election.

| Party | Party | Ward | Ward | Ward | List | List | List | Total seats |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | African National Congress | 8,297 | 47.88 | 8 | 8,330 | 48.61 | 2 | 10 |
| | Democratic Alliance | 4,622 | 26.68 | 2 | 4,592 | 26.79 | 4 | 6 |
| | Independent Democrats | 2,618 | 15.11 | 1 | 2,643 | 15.42 | 2 | 3 |
| | United Independent Front | 739 | 4.27 | 0 | 757 | 4.42 | 1 | 1 |
| | First Community Party of South Africa | 648 | 3.74 | 0 | 562 | 3.28 | 1 | 1 |
| | Independent candidates | 343 | 1.98 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 60 | 0.35 | 0 | 254 | 1.48 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 17,327 | 100.00 | 11 | 17,138 | 100.00 | 10 | 21 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 17,327 | 98.13 | | 17,138 | 97.18 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 331 | 1.87 | | 498 | 2.82 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 17,658 | 100.00 | | 17,636 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 37,273 | 47.37 | | 37,273 | 47.32 | | |

### September 2007 floor crossing

The final floor-crossing period occurred on 1–15 September 2007; floor-crossing was subsequently abolished in 2008 by the Fifteenth Amendment of the Constitution. In the Witzenberg council, one councillor crossed from the Independent Democrats (ID) to the new National People's Party, one crossed from the First Community Party to the ID, and one crossed from the African National Congress to the Democratic Alliance.

| Party | Seats before | Net change | Seats after |
| - | - | - | - |
| African National Congress | 10 | 1 | 9 |
| Democratic Alliance | 6 | 1 | 7 |
| Independent Democrats | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| United Independent Front | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| National People's Party | — | 1 | 1 |
| First Community Party of South Africa | 1 | 1 | 0 |

### By-elections from September 2007 to May 2011

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period between the floor crossing period in September 2007 and the election in May 2011.

| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 12 August 2009 | 3 | | Democratic Alliance | | Democratic Alliance |
| 2 September 2009 | 5 | | Democratic Alliance | | Democratic Alliance |

## May 2011 election

The following table shows the results of the 2011 election.

| Party | Party | Ward | Ward | Ward | List | List | List | Total seats |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | Democratic Alliance | 9,634 | 45.21 | 7 | 10,024 | 47.57 | 3 | 10 |
| | African National Congress | 7,622 | 35.77 | 4 | 7,764 | 36.84 | 4 | 8 |
| | National People's Party | 722 | 3.39 | 0 | 681 | 3.23 | 1 | 1 |
| | Congress of the People | 578 | 2.71 | 0 | 612 | 2.90 | 1 | 1 |
| | Voice of Independents Party | 430 | 2.02 | 0 | 385 | 1.83 | 1 | 1 |
| | Democratic Christian Party | 403 | 1.89 | 0 | 392 | 1.86 | 1 | 1 |
| | United Independent Front | 383 | 1.80 | 0 | 386 | 1.83 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent candidates | 699 | 3.28 | 1 | | | | 1 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 309 | 1.45 | 0 | 346 | 1.64 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic Association of Witzenberg Independence | 334 | 1.57 | 0 | 282 | 1.34 | 0 | 0 |
| | South African Progressive Civic Organisation | 194 | 0.91 | 0 | 201 | 0.95 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 21,308 | 100.00 | 12 | 21,073 | 100.00 | 11 | 23 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 21,308 | 98.64 | | 21,073 | 97.61 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 293 | 1.36 | | 517 | 2.39 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 21,601 | 100.00 | | 21,590 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 42,208 | 51.18 | | 42,208 | 51.15 | | |

### By-elections from May 2011 to August 2016

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period between the elections in May 2011 and August 2016.

| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| - | - | - | - |
| 30 January 2013 | 10 | Democratic Alliance | African National Congress |
| 4 February 2015 | 10 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 1 April 2015 | 7 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |

## August 2016 election

The following table shows the results of the 2016 election.

| Party | Party | Ward | Ward | Ward | List | List | List | Total seats |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | Democratic Alliance | 10,886 | 45.71 | 7 | 10,985 | 46.22 | 4 | 11 |
| | African National Congress | 7,497 | 31.48 | 5 | 7,861 | 33.08 | 3 | 8 |
| | Witzenberg Aksie | 1,172 | 4.92 | 0 | 1,201 | 5.05 | 1 | 1 |
| | Independent Civic Organisation of South Africa | 873 | 3.67 | 0 | 944 | 3.97 | 1 | 1 |
| | Economic Freedom Fighters | 773 | 3.25 | 0 | 783 | 3.29 | 1 | 1 |
| | Congress of the People | 389 | 1.63 | 0 | 423 | 1.78 | 1 | 1 |
| | Land Claims Fighters | 424 | 1.78 | 0 | 337 | 1.42 | 0 | 0 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 349 | 1.47 | 0 | 327 | 1.38 | 0 | 0 |
| | Freedom Front Plus | 324 | 1.36 | 0 | 302 | 1.27 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic Association of Witzenberg Independence | 312 | 1.31 | 0 | 264 | 1.11 | 0 | 0 |
| | Patriotic Alliance | 221 | 0.93 | 0 | 270 | 1.14 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent candidates | 426 | 1.79 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | People's Democratic Movement | 170 | 0.71 | 0 | 70 | 0.29 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 23,816 | 100.00 | 12 | 23,767 | 100.00 | 11 | 23 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 23,816 | 98.22 | | 23,767 | 98.04 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 432 | 1.78 | | 475 | 1.96 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 24,248 | 100.00 | | 24,242 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 46,980 | 51.61 | | 46,980 | 51.60 | | |

The eleven councillors from the Democratic Alliance (DA) formed a coalition with the single councillor from the Congress of the People (COPE) to govern the municipality. The local council sends three representatives to the council of the Cape Winelands District Municipality: two from the Democratic Alliance and one from the African National Congress.

### By-elections from August 2016 to November 2021

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period between the elections in August 2016 and November 2021.

| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 5 December 2018 | 9 | | African National Congress | | African National Congress |

## November 2021 election

The following table shows the results of the 2021 election.

| Party | Party | Ward | Ward | Ward | List | List | List | Total seats |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | Democratic Alliance | 7,388 | 36.59 | 8 | 7,262 | 36.70 | 0 | 8 |
| | African National Congress | 6,073 | 30.07 | 4 | 6,108 | 30.86 | 3 | 7 |
| | Good | 1,268 | 6.28 | 0 | 1,232 | 6.23 | 2 | 2 |
| | Patriotic Alliance | 1,078 | 5.34 | 0 | 1,096 | 5.54 | 1 | 1 |
| | Witzenberg Aksie | 741 | 3.67 | 0 | 754 | 3.81 | 1 | 1 |
| | Independent Civic Organisation of South Africa | 616 | 3.05 | 0 | 564 | 2.85 | 1 | 1 |
| | Economic Freedom Fighters | 575 | 2.85 | 0 | 581 | 2.94 | 1 | 1 |
| | Freedom Front Plus | 493 | 2.44 | 0 | 479 | 2.42 | 1 | 1 |
| | Witzenberg Party | 373 | 1.85 | 0 | 404 | 2.04 | 1 | 1 |
| | Congress of the People | 370 | 1.83 | 0 | 331 | 1.67 | 0 | 0 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 342 | 1.69 | 0 | 315 | 1.59 | 0 | 0 |
| | Breedevallei Onafhanklik | 239 | 1.18 | 0 | 254 | 1.28 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic Association of Witzenberg Independence | 284 | 1.41 | 0 | 132 | 0.67 | 0 | 0 |
| | Witzenberg Onafhanklike Demokratiese Party | 183 | 0.91 | 0 | 171 | 0.86 | 0 | 0 |
| | Cape Independence Party | 75 | 0.37 | 0 | 48 | 0.24 | 0 | 0 |
| | Spectrum National Party | 56 | 0.28 | 0 | 45 | 0.23 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent candidates | 32 | 0.16 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | African Progressive Movement | 8 | 0.04 | 0 | 14 | 0.07 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 20,194 | 100.00 | 12 | 19,790 | 100.00 | 11 | 23 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 20,194 | 98.75 | | 19,790 | 98.50 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 255 | 1.25 | | 301 | 1.50 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 20,449 | 100.00 | | 20,091 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 47,098 | 43.42 | | 47,098 | 42.66 | | |

A successful court application in December 2021 by the Democratic Alliance (DA) to recount the ballets in two wards saw the DA regain a seat from Good and regain control of the council.

| Party | Party | Ward | Ward | Ward | List | List | List | Total seats |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | Democratic Alliance | 7,388 | 36.82 | 8 | 7,361 | 36.95 | 1 | 9 |
| | African National Congress | 6,073 | 30.27 | 4 | 6,108 | 30.66 | 3 | 7 |
| | Good | 1,268 | 6.32 | 0 | 1,232 | 6.18 | 1 | 1 |
| | Patriotic Alliance | 1,082 | 5.39 | 0 | 1,096 | 5.50 | 1 | 1 |
| | Witzenberg Aksie | 740 | 3.69 | 0 | 754 | 3.78 | 1 | 1 |
| | Independent Civic Organisation of South Africa | 616 | 3.07 | 0 | 566 | 2.84 | 1 | 1 |
| | Economic Freedom Fighters | 575 | 2.87 | 0 | 581 | 2.92 | 1 | 1 |
| | Freedom Front Plus | 492 | 2.45 | 0 | 499 | 2.50 | 1 | 1 |
| | Witzenberg Party | 373 | 1.86 | 0 | 405 | 2.03 | 1 | 1 |
| | Congress of the People | 370 | 1.84 | 0 | 334 | 1.68 | 0 | 0 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 339 | 1.69 | 0 | 316 | 1.59 | 0 | 0 |
| | Breedevallei Onafhanklik | 240 | 1.20 | 0 | 254 | 1.27 | 0 | 0 |
| | Witzenberg Onafhanklike Demokratiese Party | 183 | 0.91 | 0 | 175 | 0.88 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic Association of Witzenberg Independence | 155 | 0.77 | 0 | 132 | 0.66 | 0 | 0 |
| | Cape Independence Party | 75 | 0.37 | 0 | 52 | 0.26 | 0 | 0 |
| | Spectrum National Party | 56 | 0.28 | 0 | 45 | 0.23 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent candidates | 32 | 0.16 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | African Progressive Movement | 8 | 0.04 | 0 | 14 | 0.07 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 20,065 | 100.00 | 12 | 19,924 | 100.00 | 11 | 23 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 20,065 | 98.79 | | 19,924 | 98.53 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 245 | 1.21 | | 298 | 1.47 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 20,310 | 100.00 | | 20,222 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 47,098 | 43.12 | | 47,098 | 42.94 | | |

### By-elections from November 2021

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period from November 2021.

| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 20 April 2022 | 30904003 | | Democratic Alliance | | Democratic Alliance |
