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.).
We could not confirm who is mayor of Lephalale now, because two people claim to be mayor. Thabitha Modise had been mayor since May 2026. She was elected as an ANC (Councillor A person elected to make decisions for a municipality, such as the budget and who the mayor is. Each one holds one seat.) in 2021. A council meeting on 28 September 2026 re-elected Aaron Mokgehle. The Citizen reports that the ANC in Waterberg ended his membership. The Citizen also reports that he is no longer a councillor. The SACP says he is its member. The SACP also says he is challenging the ANC decision in court and that he is the rightful mayor. Modise says she is still mayor. The municipal website, read on 18 October 2026, names her. We found no court ruling or official council statement that settles the dispute. In 2021, the ANC won 19 of the 29 (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.). Earlier in this term, DA councillor Nico Pienaar was mayor from October 2022 until 2023.
What the sources said, by date
As of 16 Oct 2026
The Lephalale Local Municipality's website names Cllr Thabitha Modise as mayor.
This was true then. Newer rows above may change it.
As of 10 Oct 2026
A council meeting on 28 September 2026 re-elected Aaron Mokgehle as Lephalale mayor. He replaced Thabitha Modise, who had been mayor since May 2026. Modise says she is still mayor. The ANC reportedly ended Mokgehle's membership. The SACP says he is its member. The article says he is no longer a councillor.
As of 10 Oct 2026
The SACP in Limpopo said Aaron Mokgehle and two others were challenging the ANC's decision to expel them in the Polokwane High Court. It also said that no council meeting had been held since the 28 September 2026 meeting that elected Mokgehle. Thabitha Modise said she remained mayor.
As of 17 May 2023
ANC councillor Aaron Mokgehle was elected Lephalale mayor at a council meeting. He replaced ANC councillor Louisa Shongwe, who had resigned. He is the fourth mayor since the 2021 elections.
As of 13 Oct 2022
DA councillor Nico Pienaar was elected Lephalale mayor after three ANC councillors voted against their (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.) candidate.
As of 9 Nov 2021
Aaron Mokgetle is spelled Mokgehle in news reports. Aaron Mokgetle and Thabitha Modise were both elected to the Lephalale council in 2021 as ANC PR councillors. A PR councillor holds a seat a party gets from its list, to match its share of the votes. Their ANC list numbers were 1 and 4.
How were the seats split?
Who holds the 29 (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.) now, counted up to 24 Jun 2026. A (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.) needs 15 seats to run the (Council The group of elected people who make decisions for a municipality. They pass its budget and choose the mayor.) on its own. The ANC has 19, so it can choose the (Mayor The leader of the municipality. Councillors choose this person, not voters. So the seats each party wins decide who can lead.) and pass the budget on its own.
- ANC19
- DA3
- EFF3
- ATM1
- Lephalale Residents Party1
- FF+1
Each dot is one seat. The dot with a ring is seat 15. That is how many seats one party needs to run the council alone. Each party shows in its own colour. One party has no colour on record, so it is grey too.
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 Lephalale an unqualified audit opinion with findings for 2024-25. It got the same result in 2023-24.
This means its accounts were right, but the Auditor-General found other problems, such as broken laws or weak reports on its work.
Auditor-General of South Africa, 24 June 2026
Where do I vote, and who is my ward councillor?
Lephalale has 15 (Ward A small area inside a municipality. Each one elects one councillor.). 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.
Take the quizFind your town to see your ward, your voting station and every name on your papers.
Or check with the IEC
- Who is my ward councillor now?IEC lookup. Shows your ward and who represents it now. (IEC website)
- Voting station finderIEC map. Find the station where you are registered. (IEC website)
Spotted a mistake? Report a mistake. Every change is logged on the Corrections page.