Checked 16 October 2026
Where the facts about Rustenburg come from
Every fact on the Rustenburg 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
As of 16 Oct 2026: Rustenburg's website names Councillor Sheila Mabale-Huma as executive mayor. It says Mabale-Huma leads 'on behalf of the ruling party, the African National Congress'.
Rustenburg Local Municipality. Page is undated.
Where to look: 'The Executive Mayor' section (page undated; as_of is the date accessed)
As of 8 May 2026: Sheila Mabale-Huma is the mayor of Rustenburg.
IOL. Published 8 May 2026.
Where to look: Paragraph 2
As of 8 May 2026: In May 2026, Rustenburg executive mayor Sheila Mabale-Huma asked for an investigation. The request went to the MEC for cooperative governance. An MEC is a member of the provincial government. The request was about a special council meeting set for 28 April 2026. Speaker Lebogang Pule had cancelled it.
IOL. Published 8 May 2026.
Where to look: paragraphs 1-3
As of 29 Aug 2024: The MK party won Ward 45 from the ANC in an August 2024 by-election (a vote to fill one empty ward seat). After that, the council had the ANC (42 seats), the EFF (17), the DA (13), Tsogang Civic Movement (7) and FF Plus (3). It also had one seat each for MK, Arona, AIC, Forum 4 Service Delivery, ACDP, UDM, Botho Community Movement and an independent. That is 90 seats in total. Daily Maverick wrote that the ANC might need another partner to reach 46.
Daily Maverick. Published 29 August 2024.
Where to look: Ward 45 (Photsaneng Marikana) Rustenburg section: 'New council composition' line and the paragraph before it
As of 20 Nov 2021: On 20 November 2021, the ANC signed coalition agreements in Rustenburg with Arona, the African Independent Congress and an independent councillor. This gave the ANC and its partners 46 of the 90 council seats.
SABC News. Published 20 November 2021.
Where to look: paragraphs 1, 4-5
How were the seats split?
The 2021 result
Who won the 90 seats in 2021.
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Page is undated.
Where to look: p. 3-4 of 4, seat table, Total Party Seats column
Every party
The seats now, by party (ward seats and party seats). African National Congress: 42 (34 ward, 8 party). Economic Freedom Fighters: 17 (1 ward, 16 party). Democratic Alliance: 13 (7 ward, 6 party). Tsogang Civic Movement: 7 (1 ward, 6 party). Freedom Front Plus: 3 (0 ward, 3 party). African Christian Democratic Party: 1 (0 ward, 1 party). African Independent Congress: 1 (0 ward, 1 party). Arona: 1 (0 ward, 1 party). Botho Community Movement: 1 (0 ward, 1 party). Forum 4 Service Delivery: 1 (0 ward, 1 party). uMkhonto weSizwe Party: 1 (1 ward, 0 party). United Democratic Movement: 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 90 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 Rustenburg a qualified audit opinion for 2024-25. It got the same result in 2023-24.
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)
Doubt it can pay its bills
The Auditor-General found a going concern uncertainty at Rustenburg in 2024-25, for the third year in a row.
Auditor-General of South Africa. Published 24 June 2026.
Where to look: p. 50 (PDF page 54), 'Sixty-two municipalities with going concern uncertainty and consecutive years in this position', North West, 'Rustenburg LM' row; p. 49 explains the measure
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