The local government elections will be held on Monday, 1 November.
The minister of co-operative governance and traditional affairs, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, made the announcement at a briefing yesterday. She said that the election will officially be proclaimed on 20 September, after a voter registration weekend.
1 November is the last day the election can be held to meet the constitutionally imposed deadline, which states that elections must be held no later than 90 days after the expiry of the term of a legislative body.
Dlamini-Zuma said that there would be discussions to determine whether the day would be a public holiday, as is customary for elections in South Africa.
This will be the first election since the 2000 local government election to not be held on a Wednesday. In 2000 the election was held on a Tuesday.