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Election day Wed 4 Nov
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Who runs Garden Route?

Marais Kruger (DA) is (Mayor The leader of the municipality. Councillors choose this person, not voters. So the seats each party wins decide who can lead.) of Garden Route. In 2021, no (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.) won more than half of the (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.) voters choose directly in Garden Route.

Checked 16 Oct 2026. Sourced, not yet reviewed.

Photo: Garden Route · Oli4eben, CC BY-SA 4.0

Checked 16 Oct 2026. Sourced, not yet reviewed.

Which party controls the council?

Voters choose the (Council The group of elected people who make decisions for a municipality. They pass its budget and choose the mayor.). The council chooses the (Mayor The leader of the municipality. Councillors choose this person, not voters. So the seats each party wins decide who can lead.).

The district's website names Marais Kruger (DA) as executive mayor (a mayor who makes many of the council's decisions). The page has no date. IOL (April 2026) lists the Garden Route District as DA-governed. Daily Maverick (August 2024) said the DA worked with Icosa at district level. This is a (District council A council over several local municipalities. It runs services for the whole area. There are 44. Voters outside the metros also vote for it.). In 2021, no (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.) won more than half of the 14 (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.) voters choose directly. The DA won 7. The (Local municipality A municipality for a town or rural area outside the metros. There are 205.) send the other members. We did not check the full make-up of the council.

What the sources said, by date

  1. On the council's website, no date shown

    Marais Kruger (DA) is executive mayor of the Garden Route District.

  2. As of 21 Apr 2026

    IOL reported in April 2026 that the Garden Route District is one of 11 (Municipality The local government for your area. It looks after local services, such as water, rubbish removal and local roads. There are 257.) 'currently under' DA governance. The DA named Marais Kruger as its mayoral candidate for the Garden Route District.

  3. This was true then. Newer rows above may change it.

    As of 25 Aug 2024

    At district level the DA works with Icosa in the Garden Route.

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How were the seats split?

Voters choose 14 of this (District council A council over several local municipalities. It runs services for the whole area. There are 44. Voters outside the metros also vote for it.) (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.) directly. The (Local municipality A municipality for a town or rural area outside the metros. There are 205.) send the other members. A (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.) needs 8 of these 14 seats to win more than half of them. No party has that many.

  • DA7
  • ANC3
  • GOOD1
  • Independent Civic Organisation of South Africa1
  • Plaaslike Besorgde Inwoners1
  • FF+1

Each dot is one seat. The dot with a ring is seat 8. That is more than half of the seats voters choose directly. Each party shows in its own colour. 2 parties have no colour on record, so they are grey too.

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What has the council done?

We have not checked any claims about this (Council The group of elected people who make decisions for a municipality. They pass its budget and choose the mayor.) yet. That is not a mark for or against it.

Core servicesWater, lights, rubbish and roads: what your council runs.No checks yet

Housing and landHouses, informal settlements and title deeds.No checks yet

Safety and jobsCrime, metro police and work in your area.No checks yet

Governance and moneyCorruption, audits and budgets: how your council uses your money.No checks yet

What the official records say

From the Auditor-General and the national government. Every council gets the same checks. A council that is not on a list shows no row.

The Auditor-General gave the Garden Route district council a clean audit (unqualified with no findings) for 2024-25. It got the same result in 2023-24.

This means its accounts and its reports on its work were right, and it followed the key laws.

Auditor-General of South Africa, 24 June 2026

In July 2026, the Minister of Cooperative Governance told Parliament that the intervention at the Garden Route district council is ongoing. It began in October 2024, under section 139(1)(a) of the Constitution.

This means the province gave the council a formal order (a directive) to fix a problem.

Department of Cooperative Governance, 3 July 2026

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How does voting work here?

You can only vote at the (Voting station The place where you vote, often a school or a hall. You can only vote at the one where you are registered.) where you are (Registered Your name is on the voters' roll. Registration for this election closed on 7 August 2026.).

Pick what matters to you and see which parties promised it, with a link to where it said so.

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