Checked 16 October 2026
Where the facts about Umzumbe come from
Every fact on the Umzumbe 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: The national government contact directory lists Cllr Bongani Nyuswa as executive mayor (a mayor who makes many of the council's decisions) of Umzumbe.
South African Government. Page is undated.
Where to look: undated, read 2026-10-16; 'Executive Mayor: Bongani Nyuswa, Cllr'
On the council's website, no date shown: Bongani Goodman Nyuswa is mayor and Mlungisi Ndlovu is deputy mayor of uMzumbe, according to National Treasury's municipal officials list.
National Treasury. Page is undated.
Where to look: undated, read 2026-10-18; rows 'Mayor/Executive Mayor' and 'Deputy Mayor/Executive Mayor' (parties not shown)
As of 12 Feb 2026: Before the Ward 13 by-election of 11 February 2026, the ANC and IFP held 17 seats each in the 39-seat council. The EFF held 2 seats. ATM, APEMO and MK held 1 seat each. The IFP held the ward and stayed tied with the ANC as the largest party.
Daily Maverick. Published 12 February 2026.
Where to look: KwaZulu-Natal section, 'Ward 13 (Hlanzeni Nkalokazi) uMzumbe, Ugu': 'The ANC and IFP went into this by-election with 17 seats each in the 39-seat council'
As of 12 Feb 2026: The ANC holds the mayoralty in uMzumbe under a power-sharing agreement with the IFP.
Daily Maverick. Published 12 February 2026.
Where to look: same Ward 13 section: 'The ANC currently has the mayoral chain in uMzumbe, and a power-sharing agreement with the IFP'
As of 18 Jul 2024: The ANC lost its majority in the June 2024 by-elections. This left the ANC and IFP with 17 councillors each. The two parties agreed to govern uMzumbe together. The ANC keeps the mayor, the council chief whip and the chair of the Municipal Public Accounts Committee. The IFP takes the deputy mayor and speaker posts.
Sunday World. Published 18 July 2024.
Where to look: paragraphs 1-4 (pact; letter quoting 17 councillors each; ANC keeps mayorship and council whip and heads MPAC, IFP gets deputy mayor and speaker); date from page metadata
As of 18 Jun 2024: In the June 2024 by-elections, the IFP won three wards, the ANC kept two and MK won one. The by-elections were held after six ANC ward councillors, who the ANC had suspended, switched to MK.
Daily Maverick. Published 18 June 2024.
Where to look: introduction ('Six ward councillors defected to MK party after they were suspended from the ANC') and the ward-by-ward results
As of 15 Feb 2024: In February 2024 a council meeting called by the suspended ANC speaker elected IFP councillor Mlungisi Ndlovu as mayor. A court declared that meeting invalid. Bongani Nyuswa said he was still mayor.
eNCA. Published 15 February 2024.
Where to look: paragraphs 1-2 and summary line ('a court has declared that meeting null and void')
As of 9 Nov 2021: Bongani Goodman Nyuswa was elected in uMzumbe in 2021. Nyuswa was an ANC PR councillor (a seat from the party's list, to match its share of the votes). Mlungisi Ndlovu was elected as an IFP PR councillor.
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Published 9 November 2021.
Where to look: KZN213 - uMzumbe: ANC PR(6) NYUSWA BONGANI GOODMAN; IFP PR(1) NDLOVU MLUNGISI
How were the seats split?
The 2021 result
Who won the 39 seats in 2021.
Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC). Page is undated.
Where to look: p. 3 of 3, seat table, Total Party Seats column
Every party
The seats now, by party (ward seats and party seats). African National Congress: 17 (11 ward, 6 party). Inkatha Freedom Party: 17 (8 ward, 9 party). Economic Freedom Fighters: 2 (0 ward, 2 party). African People's Movement: 1 (0 ward, 1 party). African Transformation Movement: 1 (0 ward, 1 party). uMkhonto weSizwe Party: 1 (1 ward, 0 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 39 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 Umzumbe an unqualified audit opinion with findings for 2024-25. That is better than in 2023-24, when it got an adverse 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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