Checked 16 October 2026
Where the facts about Ratlou come from
Every fact on the Ratlou page, with the sources we used. We save a copy of each source on the day we read it.
Which party controls the council?
Dated reports
On the council's website, no date shown: Councillor Matlhomola Jafta is mayor, according to the municipality's councillors page.
Ratlou Local Municipality. Page is undated.
Where to look: councillors page, first card; undated, read 2026-10-18
As of 28 Jan 2026: Councillor Matlhomola Jafta is mayor of Ratlou and chairperson of the executive committee. Councillor Gloria Leepo is speaker (the councillor who chairs council meetings). The ANC holds a majority of the 27 council seats.
Ratlou Local Municipality. Published 28 January 2026.
Where to look: pp. 23-24, political governance section and councillor table (27 councillors, no party per name); date is the upload timestamp in the file name; report covers the year to 30 June 2025
As of 9 Nov 2021: Matlhomola Ronald Jafta was elected as the ANC's Ward 3 councillor in Ratlou in 2021.
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Published 9 November 2021.
Where to look: NW381 - Ratlou, African National Congress, ward 63801003: JAFTA MATLHOMOLA RONALD
How were the seats split?
The 2021 result
Who won the 27 seats in 2021.
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Page is undated.
Where to look: p. 1 of 2, seat table, Total Party Seats column
Every party
The seats now, by party (ward seats and party seats). African National Congress: 19 (14 ward, 5 party). Economic Freedom Fighters: 3 (0 ward, 3 party). Forum 4 Service Delivery: 3 (0 ward, 3 party). Democratic Alliance: 1 (0 ward, 1 party). United Christian Democratic Party: 1 (0 ward, 1 party).
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Published 24 June 2026.
Where to look: winning party per ward for every by-election since 2021 (dashboard data files: MapsJason/2021/ByElections.js and LoadCouncillorsService); read 2026-10-18
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Published 9 November 2021.
Where to look: ward councillor rows for this council (party per ward elected in 2021)
The seats now
Who holds the 27 seats now, counted up to 24 Jun 2026. How we count: This is our own count, not an official IEC table. We start with the 2021 party seats from the IEC. Then we add the party that last won each ward, in 2021 or in a by-election. Party seats stay with their party, and councillors can't switch parties. So only ward by-elections change these totals. An empty seat is counted with the party that last held it. The IEC lists by-elections on 5 Oct 2022, but it does not show who won them. So any ward that changed hands that day is not counted.
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Published 24 June 2026.
Where to look: winning party per ward for every by-election since 2021 (dashboard data files: MapsJason/2021/ByElections.js and LoadCouncillorsService); read 2026-10-18
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Published 9 November 2021.
Where to look: ward councillor rows for this council (party per ward elected in 2021)
What the official records say
Audit result
The Auditor-General gave Ratlou a qualified audit opinion for 2024-25. That is better than in 2023-24, when it got a disclaimer of opinion.
Auditor-General of South Africa. Published 24 June 2026.
Where to look: 'Audit outcome for 2024-25' box and the change from 2023-24 under it (audit of separate financial statements, finalised by 30 April 2026)
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