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Who runs Setsoto?

Seipati Mbiwe (ANC) is (Mayor The leader of the municipality. Councillors choose this person, not voters. So the seats each party wins decide who can lead.) of Setsoto, as of 1 Jun 2026. In 2021, the ANC 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 Setsoto.

Checked 16 Oct 2026. Sourced, not yet reviewed.

Photo: Ficksburg · F. Fouché, Public domain

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.).

Seipati Mbiwe (ANC) is executive mayor of Setsoto, as named in the final 2026/27 IDP from June 2026. An IDP (Integrated Development Plan) is the council's main plan. An executive mayor makes many of the council's decisions. Pakalitha Mavaleliso (ANC) is speaker. A speaker is 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. 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 lists five ANC MMCs and one ATM MMC. MMCs are members of the mayoral committee. In 2021, the ANC won 17 of the 33 (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.). That is one over half. Since then, the (Ward A small area inside a municipality. Each one elects one councillor.) that changed hands, in 2024, moved between two other (Party A group of people who stand for election together, with shared plans.).

What the sources said, by date

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

    Setsoto's mayoral committee page lists Executive Mayor Seipati Justine Mbiwe (ANC). It lists these MMCs from the ANC: Koalane, Selasi, Mthimkhulu and Makae. It also lists Tommy Ancell (ATM) as an MMC. It also lists Speaker Pakalitha Isaac Mavaleliso (ANC).

  2. As of 1 Jun 2026

    Setsoto's final 2026/27 IDP is signed by Executive Mayor Seipati Mbiwe. It names Pakalitha Mavaleliso as speaker. It lists Mbiwe as an ANC proportional representation councillor elected on 1 November 2021. A PR councillor has a seat from the party's list, to match the party's share of the votes.

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

    As of 1 Nov 2025

    SJ Mbiwe was mayor of Setsoto Local Municipality in November 2025. The speaker was PI Mavaleliso.

  4. As of 24 Jul 2025

    (Parliament South Africa's national law-makers, in Cape Town. It has two parts, the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces.) made a list for Setsoto Local Municipality in July 2025. This was during a joint oversight visit (a visit to check on the council). It listed 'Executive Mayor - Cllr Mbiwe' and 'Speaker - Cllr Mavaleliso'.

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How were the seats split?

Who holds the 33 (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 17 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 17, 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.

  • ANC17
  • Setsoto Service Delivery Forum7
  • EFF4
  • DA2
  • FF+2
  • ATM1

Each dot is one seat. The dot with a ring is seat 17. 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.

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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 Setsoto 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

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

Setsoto has 17 (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.

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