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.).
Michael Khumalo (IFP) has been mayor of Zululand since June 2024. This is a (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.) run by the IFP. In January 2026 the IFP refused an NFP demand to hand over control of the district. We found no later change. We found no source for the full make-up of the council. In 2021, the IFP won 8 of the 15 (Seat A place on the council, held by one councillor. A party with more votes gets more of these places.) voters choose directly.
What the sources said, by date
As of 25 Jan 2026
The IFP said it would not hand over control of the Zululand District Municipality to the NFP. The NFP had demanded it as a condition for staying in the provincial (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 government together). The IFP denied any earlier agreement to transfer control.
This was true then. Newer rows above may change it.
As of 28 Jun 2024
IFP candidate Michael Khumalo was elected mayor of the Zululand District Municipality. Khumalo succeeded Thulasizwe Buthelezi, who became KwaZulu-Natal MEC (a provincial minister) for Co-operative Governance. The IFP said there is no local government agreement between the IFP and NFP.
How were the seats split?
Voters choose 15 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 15 seats to win more than half of them. The IFP has 8, so it did.
- IFP8
- ANC3
- National Freedom Party3
- 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. 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 the Zululand district council 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
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.