Over twenty by-elections were held across the country on Wednesday, with the DA having a good day at the office, successfully defending 16 seats.
There were several by-elections in KwaZulu-Natal, three of them in eThekwini.
In eThekwini the DA was defending all three seats, which it did successfully, winning between 80% and 92% of the vote in the three wards.
Elsewhere in KwaZulu-Natal the DA defended another seat in uMdoni (Scottburgh). Here the DA again didn’t face a major challenge. The party won nearly 99% of the vote, with the only other party to field a candidate being the ANC.
The DA also defended another seat further up the coast in KwaDukuza, just north of eThekwini. It was a similar story here with the DA winning almost 99% of the vote.
In Ray Nkonyeni (Port Shepstone) the ANC was defending two seats. In one seat it faced a strong challenge from the IFP and MK, but managed to hold on to the ward, winning 38% of the vote: a decline from the 66% it won in the 2021 local government elections. However, the anti-ANC vote was split between MK and the IFP, which meant the ANC retained the seat.
In the other ward that the ANC was defending in the municipality, MK managed to take a seat off the party, with the ANC winning 39% of the vote and MK just over 50%. This winner is now MK’s third ward councillor.
In Mpofana (Mooi River) the ANC held on to a ward, but with a reduced majority, seeing its vote share fall to 49% from 68%. The IFP and MK were again the primary challengers here, winning 31% and 19% of the vote respectively.
The final by-election in KwaZulu-Natal was held in Nkandla, where the IFP easily defended the ward, with just over 50% of the vote. However, the ANC saw its vote share plummet from 34% to 7%, with MK securing 40% of the vote in the by-election.
In the Free State the DA defended four seats in Mangaung. Here the party again did not have to work up much of a sweat, with its vote share in the four by-elections ranging from 85% to 98%.
There were two other by-elections in the Free State, one in in Matjhabeng (Welkom) and the other in Naledi (Dewetsdorp). In the former the DA held on to a marginal seat. In the local government election in 2021 the DA had won the ward with 46% of the vote, with the ANC winning 44% and the EFF 7%. On Wednesday the DA once again managed 46%, which was enough for it to retain the ward, with the rest of the vote being split between the ANC (36%), EFF (5%), and MK (11%).
In Naledi it was a slightly easier day for the DA, with the party managing nearly 80% of the vote in the Wednesday by-election.
Gauteng also had a number of by-elections. The ANC held on to a ward in Soweto, winning nearly 60% of the vote, against the 42% it won in 2021. The EFF and MK both won around 10% of the vote in the by-election, but the PA will be pleased with its performance. After winning only 1% of the vote in the ward in the 2021 local government poll, it saw its vote share jump to nearly 20% on Wednesday.
In another by-election in Johannesburg Al Jama-ah defended a seat in Lenasia, with the party of former Jo’burg mayor, Kabelo Gwamanda, seeing its vote share go from 49% to 60%. It seems that Gwamanda’s disastrous tenure has not harmed his political party’s prospects.
One other by-election was held in Mogale City (Krugersdorp) on Wednesday, with the ANC defending a seat fairly easily.
The DA defended another marginal seat in Lephalale (Ellisras). In 2021 the DA had won the seat with 32% of the vote, beating the ANC by six votes in the ward. On Wednesday the DA won again, but with 40% of the vote, with the ANC managing 28% and the EFF 27%.
Finally there were four by-elections held in North West. Here the DA again easily defended seats. In Matlosana (Klerksdorp) the DA won over 90% of the vote. There were also three by-elections in JB Marks (Potchefstroom).
In two of the by-elections the DA won with over 90% of the vote. In the other by-election the DA won just under 60% of the vote, with the EFF almost at 40%. However, this by-election only had a turnout of 8.5%, with fewer than 400 people turning up to vote.
The DA will be glad it managed to hold on to all its seats, safe and marginal ones. The ANC also had a decent showing, while MK will not have had the impact it would have liked. The EFF’s performance will again have disappointed it, with the party seemingly sliding backwards.
[Image: https://snl.no/Ethekwini]