# City of Cape Town elections

The council of the City of Cape Town in the Western Cape, South Africa is elected every five years by a system of mixed-member proportional representation. Half of the councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting from individual wards, while the other half are appointed from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. By-elections are held to replace the councillors elected by wards if a vacancy occurs.

## Results

The following table shows the composition of the council after past elections and floor-crossing periods.
| Event | ACDP | ALJ | ANC | COPE | DA | EFF | FF+ | ID | NNP | PAC | PA | UDM | Other | Total |
| 2000 election | 8 | — | 77 | — | 107 | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | 3 | 4 | 200 |
| 2002 floor-crossing | 8 | — | 80 | — | 71 | — | — | — | 32 | 1 | — | 3 | 5 | 200 |
| 2004 floor-crossing | 6 | — | 104 | — | 70 | — | — | 4 | 5 | 1 | — | 3 | 7 | 200 |
| 2006 election | 7 | — | 81 | — | 90 | — | 1 | 23 | — | 1 | — | 2 | 5 | 210 |
| 2007 floor-crossing | 7 | — | 81 | — | 95 | — | 1 | 16 | — | 1 | — | 1 | 8 | 210 |
| 2011 election | 3 | 1 | 73 | 3 | 135 | — | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | 1 | 3 | 221 |
| 2016 election | 3 | 2 | 57 | 1 | 154 | 7 | 1 | — | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 231 |
| 2021 election | 6 | 3 | 43 | 0 | 135 | 10 | 4 | — | — | 1 | 4 | 1 | 24 | 231 |

## December 2000 election

The current form of the City of Cape Town was created in 2000 by merging the six transitional municipalities in the Cape Town metropolitan area (Cape Town/Central, South Peninsula, Blaauwberg, Tygerberg, Oostenberg and Helderberg) and the overarching Cape Metropolitan Council. The council of the new municipality consisted of 200 members, 100 elected from wards and the other 100 from party lists. The election was held on 5 December 2000; the Democratic Alliance won a majority of 107 seats.
| Party | Party | List | List | List | Ward | Ward | Ward | Total seats |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | Democratic Alliance | 377,885 | 53.28 | 41 | 372,032 | 52.61 | 66 | 107 |
| | African National Congress | 272,181 | 38.38 | 43 | 268,124 | 37.92 | 34 | 77 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 25,976 | 3.66 | 8 | 27,972 | 3.96 | 0 | 8 |
| | United Democratic Movement | 11,231 | 1.58 | 3 | 9,098 | 1.29 | 0 | 3 |
| | Africa Muslim Party | 8,056 | 1.14 | 2 | 6,484 | 0.92 | 0 | 2 |
| | Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 4,529 | 0.64 | 1 | 1,873 | 0.26 | 0 | 1 |
| | Moderate Independent Party | 2,329 | 0.33 | 1 | 1,528 | 0.22 | 0 | 1 |
| | Green Party | 1,973 | 0.28 | 0 | 477 | 0.07 | 0 | 0 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 1,648 | 0.23 | 1 | 2,287 | 0.32 | 0 | 1 |
| | Cape People's Congress | 1,045 | 0.15 | 0 | 1,071 | 0.15 | 0 | 0 |
| | Azanian People's Organisation | 1,025 | 0.14 | 0 | 1,120 | 0.16 | 0 | 0 |
| | Helderberg Community Civic Organization | 869 | 0.12 | 0 | 625 | 0.09 | 0 | 0 |
| | Abolition of Income Tax and Usury Party | 489 | 0.07 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | Independents | | | | 14,401 | 2.04 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 709,236 | 100.00 | 100 | 707,092 | 100.00 | 100 | 200 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 709,236 | 98.87 | | 707,092 | 98.81 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 8,129 | 1.13 | | 8,497 | 1.19 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 717,365 | 100.00 | | 715,589 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 1,269,582 | 56.50 | | 1,269,582 | 56.36 | | |
| Source: Electoral Commission |||||||||

### By-elections from December 2000 to October 2002

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period between the election in December 2000 and the floor crossing period in October 2002.
| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| 25 April 2001 | 34 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 15 August 2001 | 71 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 28 August 2002 | 62 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |

### 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 Cape Town city council, the Democratic Alliance (DA) lost 31 councillors to the New National Party (NNP), which had formerly been part of the DA. The DA also lost 3 councillors to the African National Congress (ANC), 1 to the Universal Party and 1 who became an independent. The sole councillor of the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) also crossed to the NNP. The ANC and the NNP formed a coalition which held a majority of 112 seats.
| Party | Seats before | Net change | Seats after |
| African National Congress | 77 | 3 | 80 |
| Democratic Alliance | 107 | 36 | 71 |
| New National Party | – | 32 | 32 |
| African Christian Democratic Party | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| United Democratic Movement | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Africa Muslim Party | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Moderate Independent Party | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Independent | – | 1 | 1 |
| Universal Party | – | 1 | 1 |
| Inkatha Freedom Party | 1 | 1 | 0 |

### By-elections from October 2002 to August 2004

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period between the floor crossing periods in October 2002 and September 2004.
| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| 7 May 2003 | 67 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 11 February 2004 | 42 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 23 June 2004 | 6 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 23 June 2004 | 9 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 23 June 2004 | 13 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 23 June 2004 | 15 | Democratic Alliance | African National Congress |
| 23 June 2004 | 46 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |

### September 2004 floor crossing

Another floor-crossing period occurred on 1–15 September 2004. 23 of the 32 NNP councillors crossed to the ANC, giving the ANC a majority of 104 seats. A further 4 NNP councillors crossed to the ID. 2 councillors of the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) crossed to the Federation of Democrats, a new party.
| Party | Seats before | Net change | Seats after |
| African National Congress | 81 | 23 | 104 |
| Democratic Alliance | 70 | 0 | 70 |
| African Christian Democratic Party | 8 | 2 | 6 |
| New National Party | 32 | 27 | 5 |
| Independent Democrats | – | 4 | 4 |
| United Democratic Movement | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Africa Muslim Party | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Federation of Democrats | – | 2 | 2 |
| Independent | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Moderate Independent Party | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Universal Party | 1 | 0 | 1 |

### 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 newly elected councillor |
| 24 November 2004 | 32 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 7 September 2005 | 21 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 7 September 2005 | 48 | African National Congress | African National Congress |

## March 2006 election

At the election of 1 March 2006, the city council was expanded to 210 members with the addition of 5 new wards and 5 new PR list councillors. No party obtained a majority, with the Democratic Alliance (DA) winning 90 seats, the African National Congress (ANC) 81, and the new Independent Democrats (ID) 23.
After much negotiation, a seven-party governing coalition was formed, consisting of the DA, the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP), the Africa Muslim Party (AMP), the United Democratic Movement (UDM), the Freedom Front Plus (VF+), the United Independent Front (UIF), and the Universal Party (UP). The coalition held 105 seats, exactly half of the council, compared to the 104 seats held by the ANC and ID together. The single councillor from the Pan Africanist Congress abstained from the election of the mayor.
| Party | Party | List | List | List | Ward | Ward | Ward | Total seats |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | Democratic Alliance | 306,246 | 42.26 | 29 | 303,299 | 41.45 | 61 | 90 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 22,757 | 3.14 | 7 | 24,145 | 3.30 | 0 | 7 |
| | Africa Muslim Party | 9,749 | 1.35 | 3 | 9,567 | 1.31 | 0 | 3 |
| | United Democratic Movement | 6,869 | 0.95 | 2 | 5,081 | 0.69 | 0 | 2 |
| | Freedom Front Plus | 3,549 | 0.49 | 1 | 3,621 | 0.49 | 0 | 1 |
| | United Independent Front | 1,916 | 0.26 | 1 | 1,556 | 0.21 | 0 | 1 |
| | Universal Party | 1,009 | 0.14 | 1 | 1,337 | 0.18 | 0 | 1 |
| Seven-party coalition total | Seven-party coalition total | 352,095 | 48.58 | 44 | 348,606 | 47.65 | 61 | 105 |
| | African National Congress | 280,232 | 38.67 | 40 | 271,873 | 37.16 | 41 | 81 |
| | Independent Democrats | 79,839 | 11.02 | 20 | 76,711 | 10.48 | 3 | 23 |
| | Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 4,722 | 0.65 | 1 | 2,386 | 0.33 | 0 | 1 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 981 | 0.14 | 0 | 1,254 | 0.17 | 0 | 0 |
| | Federation of Democrats | 946 | 0.13 | 0 | 1,190 | 0.16 | 0 | 0 |
| | Pro Ratepayers Party | 942 | 0.13 | 0 | 977 | 0.13 | 0 | 0 |
| | Moderate Independent Party | 715 | 0.10 | 0 | 934 | 0.13 | 0 | 0 |
| | Progressive Independent Movement | 710 | 0.10 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | Pension Poverty Relief and Unemployment Front | 683 | 0.09 | 0 | 573 | 0.08 | 0 | 0 |
| | Azanian People's Organisation | 642 | 0.09 | 0 | 280 | 0.04 | 0 | 0 |
| | Peace and Justice Congress | 626 | 0.09 | 0 | 734 | 0.10 | 0 | 0 |
| | Alliance of Free Democrats | 541 | 0.07 | 0 | 61 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 |
| | First Community Party | 414 | 0.06 | 0 | 199 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | Abolition of Income Tax and Usury Party | 328 | 0.05 | 0 | 432 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | Workers International Vanguard League | 297 | 0.04 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | United Party | | | | 1,276 | 0.17 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independents | | | | 24,151 | 3.30 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 724,713 | 100.00 | 105 | 731,637 | 100.00 | 105 | 210 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 724,713 | 97.88 | | 731,637 | 98.77 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 15,664 | 2.12 | | 9,102 | 1.23 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 740,377 | 100.00 | | 740,739 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 1,486,781 | 49.80 | | 1,486,781 | 49.82 | | |
| Source: Electoral Commission |||||||||

### By-elections from March 2006 to August 2007

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period between the election in March 2006 and the floor crossing period in September 2007.
| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| 7 June 2006 | 82 | | Independent Democrats | | Democratic Alliance |
| 7 February 2007 | 74 | | Democratic Alliance | | Democratic Alliance |

### 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 Cape Town city council, the ID lost three councillors to the new National People's Party (NPP), two to the DA and one to the new Social Democratic Party. The UDM and the UIF each lost one councillor to the DA, and the AMP lost one councillor to the NPP. Control of the council was not affected because the ID had joined the governing coalition earlier in the year.
| Party | Seats before | Net change | Seats after |
| Democratic Alliance | 91 | 4 | 95 |
| African National Congress | 81 | 0 | 81 |
| Independent Democrats | 22 | 6 | 16 |
| African Christian Democratic Party | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| National People's Party | – | 4 | 4 |
| Africa Muslim Party | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| United Democratic Movement | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Freedom Front Plus | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Universal Party | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Social Democratic Party | – | 1 | 1 |
| United Independent Front | 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 newly elected councillor |
| 19 March 2008 | 15 | Democratic Alliance | Independent Democrats |
| 16 July 2008 | 103 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 10 December 2008 | 33 | African National Congress | Congress of the People |
| 10 December 2008 | 34 | African National Congress | Congress of the People |
| 10 December 2008 | 35 | African National Congress | Congress of the People |
| 10 December 2008 | 45 | African National Congress | Democratic Alliance |
| 10 December 2008 | 52 | African National Congress | Congress of the People |
| 10 December 2008 | 75 | African National Congress | Democratic Alliance |
| 10 December 2008 | 87 | African National Congress | Congress of the People |
| 10 December 2008 | 88 | African National Congress | Congress of the People |
| 25 March 2009 | 2 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 25 March 2009 | 79 | Independent Democrats | Democratic Alliance |
| 6 May 2009 | 71 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 24 June 2009 | 9 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 24 June 2009 | 14 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 24 June 2009 | 70 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 24 June 2009 | 73 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 18 November 2009 | 32 | African National Congress | Democratic Alliance |
| 26 May 2010 | 44 | African National Congress | Democratic Alliance |
| 21 July 2010 | 34 | Congress of the People | African National Congress |
| 21 July 2010 | 35 | Congress of the People | African National Congress |
| 21 July 2010 | 98 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 21 July 2010 | 99 | African National Congress | Democratic Alliance |
| 25 August 2010 | 49 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 8 December 2010 | 19 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 8 December 2010 | 104 | African National Congress | African National Congress |

## May 2011 election

At the election of 18 May 2011, the council was expanded to 221 members with the addition of 6 new wards and 5 new PR list seats. The Democratic Alliance won a majority of 135 seats.
| Party | Party | List | List | List | Ward | Ward | Ward | Total seats |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | Democratic Alliance | 682,929 | 61.15 | 57 | 675,020 | 60.69 | 78 | 135 |
| | African National Congress | 370,420 | 33.17 | 40 | 360,827 | 32.44 | 33 | 73 |
| | Congress of the People | 12,596 | 1.13 | 3 | 12,059 | 1.08 | 0 | 3 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 11,873 | 1.06 | 3 | 15,227 | 1.37 | 0 | 3 |
| | National Party | 6,038 | 0.54 | 1 | 5,718 | 0.51 | 0 | 1 |
| | United Democratic Movement | 4,290 | 0.38 | 1 | 4,402 | 0.40 | 0 | 1 |
| | Al Jama-ah | 3,928 | 0.35 | 1 | 4,310 | 0.39 | 0 | 1 |
| | Africa Muslim Party | 3,157 | 0.28 | 1 | 4,430 | 0.40 | 0 | 1 |
| | Cape Muslim Congress | 2,740 | 0.25 | 1 | 3,658 | 0.33 | 0 | 1 |
| | Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 1,993 | 0.18 | 1 | 2,606 | 0.23 | 0 | 1 |
| | Freedom Front Plus | 1,864 | 0.17 | 1 | 2,121 | 0.19 | 0 | 1 |
| | Democrats for Change | 1,637 | 0.15 | 0 | 942 | 0.08 | 0 | 0 |
| | African People's Convention | 1,513 | 0.14 | 0 | 787 | 0.07 | 0 | 0 |
| | Cape Party | 1,471 | 0.13 | 0 | 1,561 | 0.14 | 0 | 0 |
| | Community Coalition | 1,271 | 0.11 | 0 | 1,715 | 0.15 | 0 | 0 |
| | National Independent Civic Organisation | 1,048 | 0.09 | 0 | 1,844 | 0.17 | 0 | 0 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 1,031 | 0.09 | 0 | 1,888 | 0.17 | 0 | 0 |
| | United Christian Democratic Party | 845 | 0.08 | 0 | 22 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| | National Freedom Party | 765 | 0.07 | 0 | 694 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | South African Progressive Civic Organisation | 724 | 0.06 | 0 | 825 | 0.07 | 0 | 0 |
| | National People's Party | 707 | 0.06 | 0 | 1,221 | 0.11 | 0 | 0 |
| | Universal Party | 650 | 0.06 | 0 | 1,078 | 0.10 | 0 | 0 |
| | National Alliance for Democracy | 629 | 0.06 | 0 | 1,008 | 0.09 | 0 | 0 |
| | Western Cape Community | 574 | 0.05 | 0 | 291 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | United Independent Front | 436 | 0.04 | 0 | 417 | 0.04 | 0 | 0 |
| | Azanian People's Organisation | 405 | 0.04 | 0 | 322 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | African Bond of Unity | 275 | 0.02 | 0 | 232 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | Pan Africanist Movement | 265 | 0.02 | 0 | 132 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 |
| | Social Democratic Party | 167 | 0.01 | 0 | 93 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 |
| | United Civics of South Africa | 166 | 0.01 | 0 | 423 | 0.04 | 0 | 0 |
| | Abolition of Income Tax and Usury Party | 165 | 0.01 | 0 | 230 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent Civic Organisation | 151 | 0.01 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | United Majority Front | 124 | 0.01 | 0 | 301 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independents | | | | 5,893 | 0.53 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 1,116,847 | 100.00 | 110 | 1,112,297 | 100.00 | 111 | 221 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 1,116,847 | 99.20 | | 1,112,297 | 98.98 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 8,998 | 0.80 | | 11,518 | 1.02 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 1,125,845 | 100.00 | | 1,123,815 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 1,745,853 | 64.49 | | 1,745,853 | 64.37 | | |
| Source: Electoral Commission |||||||||

### 2011 mayoral election

| Candidate | Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
| | Patricia de Lille | Democratic Alliance | 137 | 64.62 |
| | Tony Ehrenreich | African National Congress | 75 | 35.38 |
| Total | Total | Total | 212 | 100.00 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | Valid votes | 212 | 97.70 |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 5 | 2.30 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 217 | 100.00 |

### 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 |
| 7 December 2011 | 71 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 18 January 2012 | 68 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 25 April 2012 | 45 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 19 September 2012 | 88 | African National Congress | Democratic Alliance |
| 30 January 2013 | 22 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 22 May 2013 | 105 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 19 February 2014 | 35 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 19 February 2014 | 43 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 28 May 2014 | 25 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 13 August 2014 | 5 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 13 August 2014 | 54 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 13 August 2014 | 56 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 5 November 2014 | 23 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 1 April 2015 | 72 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 9 December 2015 | 101 | African National Congress | African National Congress |

## August 2016 election

At the election of 3 August 2016, the council was expanded to 231 members with the addition of 5 new wards and 5 new PR list seats. The Democratic Alliance won a majority of 154 seats.
| Party | Party | List | List | List | Ward | Ward | Ward | Total seats |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | Democratic Alliance | 832,624 | 66.75 | 73 | 831,890 | 66.46 | 81 | 154 |
| | African National Congress | 305,902 | 24.52 | 22 | 302,965 | 24.20 | 35 | 57 |
| | Economic Freedom Fighters | 38,871 | 3.12 | 7 | 40,243 | 3.22 | 0 | 7 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 14,104 | 1.13 | 3 | 16,181 | 1.29 | 0 | 3 |
| | African Independent Congress | 9,515 | 0.76 | 1 | 5,228 | 0.42 | 0 | 1 |
| | Al Jama-ah | 6,892 | 0.55 | 2 | 9,506 | 0.76 | 0 | 2 |
| | Freedom Front Plus | 4,919 | 0.39 | 1 | 5,365 | 0.43 | 0 | 1 |
| | United Democratic Movement | 4,139 | 0.33 | 1 | 2,441 | 0.20 | 0 | 1 |
| | Democratic Independent Party | 3,472 | 0.28 | 1 | 4,049 | 0.32 | 0 | 1 |
| | Cape Muslim Congress | 3,386 | 0.27 | 1 | 3,073 | 0.25 | 0 | 1 |
| | Congress of the People | 3,015 | 0.24 | 1 | 3,175 | 0.25 | 0 | 1 |
| | Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 2,938 | 0.24 | 1 | 3,381 | 0.27 | 0 | 1 |
| | National Party | 2,296 | 0.18 | 0 | 1,988 | 0.16 | 0 | 0 |
| | Patriotic Alliance | 2,016 | 0.16 | 1 | 2,943 | 0.24 | 0 | 1 |
| | Cape Party | 1,760 | 0.14 | 0 | 1,608 | 0.13 | 0 | 0 |
| | Africa Muslim Party | 1,571 | 0.13 | 0 | 1,692 | 0.14 | 0 | 0 |
| | Christian Democratic Party | 1,097 | 0.09 | 0 | 318 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | Local People's Party | 1,056 | 0.08 | 0 | 1,654 | 0.13 | 0 | 0 |
| | African People's Convention | 906 | 0.07 | 0 | 749 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | Al Shura Party | 685 | 0.05 | 0 | 1,085 | 0.09 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent Civic Organisation | 673 | 0.05 | 0 | 799 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | Nationalist Coloured Party | 622 | 0.05 | 0 | 794 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | Khoisan Kingdom And All People | 527 | 0.04 | 0 | 243 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | Ubuntu Party | 490 | 0.04 | 0 | 196 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | National People's Party | 449 | 0.04 | 0 | 812 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | Khoisan Revolution | 444 | 0.04 | 0 | 218 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | South Africa People's Party | 443 | 0.04 | 0 | 451 | 0.04 | 0 | 0 |
| | Coloured Voice | 442 | 0.04 | 0 | 420 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | The Greens | 433 | 0.03 | 0 | 45 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 378 | 0.03 | 0 | 56 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| | South African Progressive Civic Organisation | 357 | 0.03 | 0 | 346 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | Sizwe Ummah Nation | 283 | 0.02 | 0 | 276 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | People's Democratic Movement | 236 | 0.02 | 0 | 203 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | South African People for Equality | 171 | 0.01 | 0 | 145 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent Sport Party | 122 | 0.01 | 0 | 39 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| | Patriotic Association | 111 | 0.01 | 0 | 19 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independents | | | | 7,077 | 0.57 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 1,247,345 | 100.00 | 115 | 1,251,673 | 100.00 | 116 | 231 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 1,247,345 | 98.58 | | 1,251,673 | 98.83 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 17,954 | 1.42 | | 14,777 | 1.17 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 1,265,299 | 100.00 | | 1,266,450 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 1,977,690 | 63.98 | | 1,977,690 | 64.04 | | |
| Source: Electoral Commission |||||||||

### 2016 mayoral election

| Candidate | Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
| | Patricia de Lille | Democratic Alliance | 160 | 74.07 |
| | Xolani Sotashe | African National Congress | 56 | 25.93 |
| Total | Total | Total | 216 | 100.00 |

### 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 newly elected councillor |
| 9 November 2016 | 108 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 2 August 2017 | 4 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 20 September 2017 | 37 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 15 November 2017 | 93 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 29 November 2017 | 102 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 16 January 2019 | 31 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 16 January 2019 | 101 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 13 February 2019 | 54 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 19 June 2019 | 21 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 21 August 2019 | 95 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 13 November 2019 | 19 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 13 November 2019 | 82 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 11 November 2020 | 14 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 11 November 2020 | 51 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 11 November 2020 | 88 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 9 December 2020 | 115 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 21 April 2021 | 20 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |

### November 2018 mayoral election

On 31 October 2018, incumbent Mayor Patricia de Lille resigned. An election was held on 6 November 2018 to determine her successor. It was subsequently won by former Mayor, Dan Plato. The candidates nominated were:
* Dan Plato (Democratic Alliance), former Provincial Minister of Community Safety (2011 - 2018); former Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament (2011 - 2018); former Mayor of Cape Town (2009 - 2011)
* Xolani Sotashe (African National Congress), incumbent Leader of the African National Congress in the Cape Town City Council; Mayoral candidate in 2016; Member of the Cape Town City Council (2000 - present)
* Grant Haskin (African Christian Democratic Party), incumbent Leader of the African Christian Democratic Caucus (2016–present); former Deputy Mayor of Cape Town (2007 - 2009); former Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament
The results were as follows.
| Candidate | Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
| | Dan Plato | Democratic Alliance | 146 | 72.28 |
| | Xolani Sotashe | African National Congress | 53 | 26.24 |
| | Grant Haskin | African Christian Democratic Party | 3 | 1.49 |
| Total | Total | Total | 202 | 100.00 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | Valid votes | 202 | 97.12 |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 6 | 2.88 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 208 | 100.00 |

## November 2021 election

The Democratic Alliance won a reduced majority of 136 seats. This was later reduced to 135 seats when after a 7-month legal battle and a recount it was announced on May 26 that the Democratic Alliance had been misallocated a seat that should have been awarded to Cape Independence Party, giving the Cape Independence Party a second seat.
| Party | Party | Ward | Ward | Ward | List | List | List | Total seats |
| Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total seats |
| | Democratic Alliance | 525,515 | 57.78 | 83 | 536,571 | 58.74 | 52 | 135 |
| | African National Congress | 167,907 | 18.46 | 33 | 170,911 | 18.71 | 10 | 43 |
| | Economic Freedom Fighters | 37,255 | 4.10 | 0 | 37,913 | 4.15 | 10 | 10 |
| | Good | 35,846 | 3.94 | 0 | 33,656 | 3.68 | 9 | 9 |
| | Cape Coloured Congress | 25,257 | 2.78 | 0 | 25,854 | 2.83 | 7 | 7 |
| | African Christian Democratic Party | 21,791 | 2.40 | 0 | 20,886 | 2.29 | 6 | 6 |
| | Freedom Front Plus | 14,825 | 1.63 | 0 | 14,025 | 1.54 | 4 | 4 |
| | Patriotic Alliance | 13,967 | 1.54 | 0 | 13,102 | 1.43 | 4 | 4 |
| | Al Jama-ah | 11,964 | 1.32 | 0 | 10,830 | 1.19 | 3 | 3 |
| | Africa Restoration Alliance | 7,365 | 0.81 | 0 | 5,856 | 0.64 | 2 | 2 |
| | Cape Independence Party | 5,876 | 0.65 | 0 | 5,697 | 0.62 | 2 | 2 |
| | United Independent Movement | 5,250 | 0.58 | 0 | 5,116 | 0.56 | 1 | 1 |
| | Independent candidates | 9,910 | 1.09 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | Cape Muslim Congress | 3,239 | 0.36 | 0 | 3,355 | 0.37 | 1 | 1 |
| | United Democratic Movement | 2,477 | 0.27 | 0 | 3,105 | 0.34 | 1 | 1 |
| | African Independent Congress | 2,861 | 0.31 | 0 | 2,596 | 0.28 | 1 | 1 |
| | Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 1,821 | 0.20 | 0 | 2,729 | 0.30 | 1 | 1 |
| | Democratic Independent Party | 1,910 | 0.21 | 0 | 1,653 | 0.18 | 1 | 1 |
| | African Transformation Movement | 871 | 0.10 | 0 | 1,811 | 0.20 | 0 | 0 |
| | Credible Alternative 1st Movement | 1,172 | 0.13 | 0 | 1,265 | 0.14 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic People's Alternative | 1,334 | 0.15 | 0 | 732 | 0.08 | 0 | 0 |
| | National Freedom Party | 1,038 | 0.11 | 0 | 978 | 0.11 | 0 | 0 |
| | One Movement for Cape Town | 810 | 0.09 | 0 | 1,186 | 0.13 | 0 | 0 |
| | The Organic Humanity Movement | 982 | 0.11 | 0 | 946 | 0.10 | 0 | 0 |
| | Congress of the People | 682 | 0.07 | 0 | 1,224 | 0.13 | 0 | 0 |
| | African People's Convention | 925 | 0.10 | 0 | 558 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | Dagga Party | 401 | 0.04 | 0 | 828 | 0.09 | 0 | 0 |
| | The Greens | 531 | 0.06 | 0 | 674 | 0.07 | 0 | 0 |
| | United South Africa | 581 | 0.06 | 0 | 557 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic People's Movement | 567 | 0.06 | 0 | 566 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | Spectrum National Party | 610 | 0.07 | 0 | 466 | 0.05 | 0 | 0 |
| | Sizwe Ummah Nation | 607 | 0.07 | 0 | 452 | 0.05 | 0 | 0 |
| | African Islamic Movement | 445 | 0.05 | 0 | 592 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic Labour Party | 218 | 0.02 | 0 | 809 | 0.09 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent Civic Organisation of South Africa | 442 | 0.05 | 0 | 533 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | African Progressive Movement | 117 | 0.01 | 0 | 791 | 0.09 | 0 | 0 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 95 | 0.01 | 0 | 802 | 0.09 | 0 | 0 |
| | United Progressive Party South Africa | 277 | 0.03 | 0 | 554 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 |
| | God Save Africa | 89 | 0.01 | 0 | 689 | 0.08 | 0 | 0 |
| | Land Party | 302 | 0.03 | 0 | 384 | 0.04 | 0 | 0 |
| | Our Nation | 291 | 0.03 | 0 | 299 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | Economic Emancipation Forum | 307 | 0.03 | 0 | 204 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | African Freedom Revolution | 253 | 0.03 | 0 | 241 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | Black First Land First | 189 | 0.02 | 0 | 244 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | People's Democratic Movement | 20 | 0.00 | 0 | 303 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 |
| | Abantu Batho Congress | 134 | 0.01 | 0 | 173 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | Compatriots of South Africa | 77 | 0.01 | 0 | 177 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent South African National Civic Organisation | 17 | 0.00 | 0 | 184 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | International Party | 3 | 0.00 | 0 | 158 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 |
| | Eastern Cape Movement | 32 | 0.00 | 0 | 98 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 |
| | Free Democrats | | | | 111 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic Equality Empowerment Party | 32 | 0.00 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | Christians of South Africa | 12 | 0.00 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | Khoi-San Kingdom of RSA | 10 | 0.00 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| Total | Total | 909,509 | 100.00 | 116 | 913,444 | 100.00 | 115 | 231 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 909,509 | 98.86 | | 913,444 | 98.85 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 10,485 | 1.14 | | 10,665 | 1.15 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 919,994 | 100.00 | | 924,109 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 1,973,708 | 46.61 | | 1,973,708 | 46.82 | | |
| Source: Electoral Commission |||||||||

### 2021 mayoral election

| Candidate | Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
| | Geordin Hill-Lewis | Democratic Alliance | 141 | 74.60 |
| | Noluthando Makasi | African National Congress | 46 | 24.34 |
| | Jack Miller | Cape Independence Party | 2 | 1.06 |
| Total | Total | Total | 189 | 100.00 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | Valid votes | 189 | 84.38 |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 35 | 15.62 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 224 | 100.00 |
| Source: |||||

### 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.
| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| 13 Oct 2022 | 5 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 23 Nov 2022 | 38 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 8 Feb 2023 | 56 | Democratic Alliance | Patriotic Alliance |
| 28 Jun 2023 | 107 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 19 Jun 2024 | 64 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 19 Jun 2024 | 105 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 19 Jun 2024 | 113 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 28 Aug 2024 | 58 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 23 Oct 2024 | 8 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
| 20 Nov 2024 | 30 | Democratic Alliance | Democratic Alliance |
In ward 56, the DA councillor resigned in November 2022. The DA failed to nominate a candidate in time for the February by-election, which was contested by parties including Good, Al Jama-ah, Economic Freedom Fighters, and the Patriotic Alliance (PA). The PA won the ward with 41% of the vote.