Take the quizFind your voting station Check you’re registered
Election day Wed 4 Nov
Take the quiz

Who runs Mossel Bay?

Dirk Kotzé (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 Mossel Bay. In 2021, the DA 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.) in Mossel Bay.

Checked 16 Oct 2026. Sourced, not yet reviewed.

Photo: Mossel Bay · Andres de Wet, CC BY-SA 3.0

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 (Municipality The local government for your area. It looks after local services, such as water, rubbish removal and local roads. There are 257.) website names Dirk Kotzé as the executive mayor (a mayor who makes many of the council's decisions). The page has no date. Kotzé was elected as a DA (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 and is the DA's 2026 candidate (EWN, March 2026). The DA has a majority. It now holds 18 of the 29 (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.), after losing a (Ward A small area inside a municipality. Each one elects one councillor.) to the PA in June 2025. The (IEC The Electoral Commission of South Africa. It runs elections. It is independent, so it does not take orders from the government or any party.) says the DA won 19 of the 29 seats in 2021, which was a majority.

What the sources said, by date

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

    Dirk Kotzé is executive mayor of Mossel Bay. Cliffie Bayman is deputy executive mayor, and Venolea Fortuin is speaker (the councillor who chairs council meetings).

  2. As of 23 Mar 2026

    The DA selected Dirk Kotzé as its mayoral candidate in Mossel Bay for the 2026 election.

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

    As of 26 Jun 2025

    The PA won a Mossel Bay ward from the DA in June 2025. After that, the DA has 18 of the 29 council seats.

  4. As of 9 Nov 2021

    Dirk Kotzé was elected in 2021 as a DA PR councillor for Mossel Bay. A PR seat is a seat a (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.) gets from its list, to match its share of the votes.

View sources (opens in a new tab)

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 DA has 18, 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.

  • DA18
  • ANC5
  • PA2
  • FF+2
  • ACDP1
  • Independent Civic Organisation of South Africa1

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.

View sources (opens in a new tab)

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 Mossel Bay 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

View sources (opens in a new tab)

Where do I vote, and who is my ward councillor?

Mossel Bay 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 quiz
See your ballot

Find your town to see your ward, your voting station and every name on your papers.

Or check with the IEC

Spotted a mistake? Report a mistake. Every change is logged on the Corrections page.