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.).
Xolani Dube of the IFP is mayor of Newcastle, EWN reported in July 2024. National Treasury's officials list also names Dube as mayor. A (Coalition Parties that agree to run a council together, usually because none has more than half the seats alone. Together they choose the mayor.) (a group of (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.) that run the council together) led by the IFP has governed since 2021. We found no report of a change of mayor or coalition in 2025 or 2026. In 2021, no party won more than half of the 67 (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.). The ANC won 22 and the IFP 18. By-elections (a vote to fill one empty (Ward A small area inside a municipality. Each one elects one councillor.) seat) in 2024 made the IFP the largest party, with 23 of the 67 seats.
What the sources said, by date
On the council's website, no date shown
Cllr David Xolani Dube is Mayor/Executive Mayor (a mayor who makes many of the council's decisions) of Newcastle, according to National Treasury's municipal officials list. Andile Nkosi is deputy mayor and Cllr S.A. Yende is speaker (the (Councillor A person elected to make decisions for a municipality, such as the budget and who the mayor is. Each one holds one seat.) who chairs council meetings).
As of 18 Jul 2024
The IFP won Ward 28, which is Madadeni E, from Team Sugar in July 2024. The seats in the 67-seat council were then IFP 23, ANC 17, EFF 8, Team Sugar 6 and DA 6.
This was true then. Newer rows above may change it.
As of 12 Jul 2024
Xolani Dube, an IFP councillor, is mayor of Newcastle. Dube was appointed KZN SALGA chairperson in July 2024.
As of 14 Mar 2024
The IFP has governed Newcastle through a coalition since the 2021 local election. In March 2024, the IFP won three wards from the ANC. It then became the largest party. A ward is an area with its own councillor. The seat count was IFP 22, ANC 18, EFF 8, Team Sugar 7, DA 5, ActionSA 3, and FF+, NFP, PA and ATM 1 each.
As of 14 Mar 2024
After the March 2024 by-elections, the ruling coalition held 38 of the 67 seats.
As of 9 Nov 2021
David Xolani Dube was elected as an IFP (Ward councillor A person chosen by the voters of one ward to speak for that area on the council. You vote for them by name.) in Newcastle in 2021. The ward is 52502018.
How were the seats split?
Who holds the 67 (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 34 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. No party has that many. So parties must work together to 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.
- IFP23
- ANC17
- EFF8
- DA6
- Team Sugar South Africa6
- ActionSA3
- 4 other parties4
Each dot is one seat. The dot with a ring is seat 34. That is how many seats one party needs to run the council alone. Each party shows in its own colour. Grey dots are the 4 other parties, with 1 seat each. 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 Newcastle 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?
Newcastle has 34 (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.