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.).
Siphile Mdaka (ANC) is mayor 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.), and the district still named Mdaka as mayor in July 2026. Mdaka was sworn in as mayor again in November 2025, after a new IFP-ANC arrangement was made. Because of it, Comfort Khumalo (IFP) resigned. Khumalo had taken Mdaka's place on 3 October 2025. That day, a motion of no confidence brought by the IFP removed Mdaka. This is a council vote to remove the mayor or speaker. 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 IFP won 7 and the ANC won 6. We found no source for the full make-up of the council. In August 2025, the KZN COGTA MEC placed the (Municipality The local government for your area. It looks after local services, such as water, rubbish removal and local roads. There are 257.) under administration. The MEC is the province's minister for local government. This was a Section 139(1)(b) intervention. That is when the province steps in to run the council. The decision was withdrawn by the end of that month.
What the sources said, by date
As of 30 Jul 2026
The uMkhanyakude District Municipality held a special council meeting on 30 July 2026. Speaker Cllr Petros Madlopha chaired it. The 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 runs council meetings. The district mayor, Cllr Siphile Mdaka, was there. So was the mayor of Jozini, Cllr Nkosinathi Myeni.
This was true then. Newer rows above may change it.
As of 27 Nov 2025
Siphile Mdaka (ANC) was sworn in again as mayor of the uMkhanyakude District Municipality. First, the IFP and ANC made a new arrangement there. Because of the arrangement, Comfort Khumalo (IFP) resigned.
As of 31 Oct 2025
ANC mayor Siphile Mdaka was removed in a no-confidence vote that the IFP brought. The IFP's Comfort Khumalo replaced Mdaka. Mdaka was then elected deputy mayor.
As of 23 Oct 2025
Mayor Siphile Mdaka, an ANC member, was removed on 3 October 2025 through a vote of no confidence. The vote came from the (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 parties that run the council together) led by the IFP. Comfort Khumalo replaced Mdaka. Pat Madlopha replaced Solomon Mkhombo as speaker (the councillor who chairs council meetings).
As of 31 Aug 2025
The KZN COGTA MEC's decision to put the uMkhanyakude District Municipality under administration was withdrawn. The MEC had used Section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution. Mayor Siphile Mdaka said the administrator's work had ended. An administrator is an official sent in to run the council. Mdaka also said the council was back in its offices.
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.
- IFP7
- ANC6
- EFF1
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.
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 uMkhanyakude district council a qualified audit opinion for 2024-25. It got the same result in 2023-24.
This means some parts of its accounts had big mistakes, or it could not show proof for some amounts.
Auditor-General of South Africa, 24 June 2026
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.
Take the quizFind your town to see your (Ward A small area inside a municipality. Each one elects one councillor.), 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.