# Umvoti Local Municipality elections

The Umvoti Local Municipality council consists of twenty-seven members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Fourteen councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in fourteen wards, while the remaining thirteen 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 3 August 2016 the African National Congress (ANC) won a majority of fifteen seats on the council. The party lost its majority in the election of 1 November 2021, obtaining a plurality of ten.

## Results

The following table shows the composition of the council after past elections.
| Event | ANC | DA | IFP | Other | Total |
| 2000 election | 5 | 2 | 13 | 0 | 20 |
| 2006 election | 8 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 21 |
| 2011 election | 10 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 22 |
| 2016 election | 15 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 27 |
| 2021 election | 10 | 1 | 9 | 7 | 27 |

## 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 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 8,931 | 61.79 | 8 | 9,104 | 62.96 | 5 | 13 |
| | African National Congress | 3,229 | 22.34 | 1 | 3,019 | 20.88 | 4 | 5 |
| | Democratic Alliance | 1,580 | 10.93 | 2 | 1,583 | 10.95 | 0 | 2 |
| | Zibambeleni Development Organisation | 523 | 3.62 | 0 | 753 | 5.21 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent candidates | 190 | 1.31 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| Total | Total | 14,453 | 100.00 | 11 | 14,459 | 100.00 | 9 | 20 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 14,453 | 97.42 | | 14,459 | 97.56 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 383 | 2.58 | | 362 | 2.44 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 14,836 | 100.00 | | 14,821 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 34,542 | 42.95 | | 34,542 | 42.91 | | |

## 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 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 10,764 | 54.87 | 8 | 10,643 | 54.31 | 4 | 12 |
| | African National Congress | 7,241 | 36.91 | 3 | 7,489 | 38.22 | 5 | 8 |
| | Democratic Alliance | 1,116 | 5.69 | 0 | 1,129 | 5.76 | 1 | 1 |
| | National Democratic Convention | 375 | 1.91 | 0 | 334 | 1.70 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent candidates | 123 | 0.63 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| Total | Total | 19,619 | 100.00 | 11 | 19,595 | 100.00 | 10 | 21 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 19,619 | 97.87 | | 19,595 | 97.73 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 427 | 2.13 | | 455 | 2.27 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 20,046 | 100.00 | | 20,050 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 39,418 | 50.85 | | 39,418 | 50.87 | | |

## 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 |
| | African National Congress | 11,733 | 42.42 | 6 | 12,052 | 43.58 | 4 | 10 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 11,426 | 41.31 | 5 | 11,295 | 40.84 | 4 | 9 |
| | National Freedom Party | 2,610 | 9.44 | 0 | 2,638 | 9.54 | 2 | 2 |
| | Democratic Alliance | 1,547 | 5.59 | 0 | 1,473 | 5.33 | 1 | 1 |
| | Minority Front | 343 | 1.24 | 0 | 197 | 0.71 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 27,659 | 100.00 | 11 | 27,655 | 100.00 | 11 | 22 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 27,659 | 97.94 | | 27,655 | 98.20 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 583 | 2.06 | | 506 | 1.80 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 28,242 | 100.00 | | 28,161 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 44,464 | 63.52 | | 44,464 | 63.33 | | |

## 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 |
| | African National Congress | 19,860 | 53.56 | 10 | 20,050 | 54.22 | 5 | 15 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 14,858 | 40.07 | 4 | 15,079 | 40.77 | 7 | 11 |
| | Democratic Alliance | 1,320 | 3.56 | 0 | 1,370 | 3.70 | 1 | 1 |
| | Economic Freedom Fighters | 599 | 1.62 | 0 | 483 | 1.31 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent candidates | 446 | 1.20 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| Total | Total | 37,083 | 100.00 | 14 | 36,982 | 100.00 | 13 | 27 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 37,083 | 98.20 | | 36,982 | 98.34 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 678 | 1.80 | | 626 | 1.66 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 37,761 | 100.00 | | 37,608 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 58,550 | 64.49 | | 58,550 | 64.23 | | |

## 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 |
| | African National Congress | 11,847 | 35.97 | 6 | 11,921 | 36.29 | 4 | 10 |
| | Inkatha Freedom Party | 10,797 | 32.78 | 5 | 11,113 | 33.83 | 4 | 9 |
| | Abantu Batho Congress | 8,004 | 24.30 | 3 | 8,162 | 24.85 | 4 | 7 |
| | Democratic Alliance | 749 | 2.27 | 0 | 766 | 2.33 | 1 | 1 |
| | Economic Freedom Fighters | 594 | 1.80 | 0 | 511 | 1.56 | 0 | 0 |
| | Independent candidates | 511 | 1.55 | 0 | | | | 0 |
| | African Mantungwa Community | 246 | 0.75 | 0 | 158 | 0.48 | 0 | 0 |
| | National Freedom Party | 113 | 0.34 | 0 | 137 | 0.42 | 0 | 0 |
| | African Transformation Movement | 75 | 0.23 | 0 | 82 | 0.25 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 32,936 | 100.00 | 14 | 32,850 | 100.00 | 13 | 27 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 32,936 | 98.50 | | 32,850 | 98.03 | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 501 | 1.50 | | 661 | 1.97 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 33,437 | 100.00 | | 33,511 | 100.00 | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 59,501 | 56.20 | | 59,501 | 56.32 | | |

### By-elections from November 2021

The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period from the election in November 2021.
| Date | Ward | Party of the previous councillor | Party of the newly elected councillor |
| 31 May 2022 | 13 | African National Congress | African National Congress |
| 3 August 2022 | 52405005 | Inkatha Freedom Party | Inkatha Freedom Party |
| 5 April 2023 | 6 | Inkatha Freedom Party | Inkatha Freedom Party |
| 19 June 2024 | 10 | Abantu Batho Congress | Inkatha Freedom Party |
After the death of the previous ward two councillor, a by-election was held on 14 June 2023. In 2021, the African National Congress (ANC) won the ward with 47% of the vote. In the by-election, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) gained support from both the ANC and the Abantu Batho Congress (ABC), winning the ward with 53%, and becoming the largest party in the council. The ANC and ABC have a working arrangement, and together still make up a majority 16 of the 27 seats.