ANC and DA eye ‘strategic’ metros such as Rustenburg and Emfuleni

WHILE the focus of this year’s local government elections has been on some of the country’s biggest metros, there are a number of so-called “strategic” districts and municipalities in which political parties are pushing for a win.

By 3pm on Thursday, 70% of the national vote had been counted and verified by the Electoral Commission of SA (IEC).

Here is a list of the strategic municipalities and districts and how parties are fairing.

• Midvaal local municipality, Gauteng. Counting and verification of votes in the area was completed, and the DA retained its hold of the municipality under mayor Bongani Baloyi, with 59.7% of the vote. Second was the ANC with 32.08%, followed by the EFF with 4.8%.

• Emfuleni local municipality, Gauteng. The DA was leading with 42.57% of the vote, but only 40% of the votes had been counted and verified in the municipality. The ANC had 40.12%. The ANC won the municipality in 2011 with 69.79% of the vote.

• Rustenburg local municipality, North West. The ANC, with 43.34%, was leading in Rustenburg while the EFF and DA were neck-and-neck for second place, with 22.99% and 24.55% respectively. The EFF campaigned hard in the area, which includes Marikana, in the run-up to the polls. The ANC won the municipality in 2011 with 71.88%

• Tlokwe local municipality, North West. The ANC was leading in the municipality with 59.15%, with 51% of the votes having been counted and verified. The DA was trailing with 24.33% and the EFF 7.69%.

• Mbombela local municipality, Mpumalanga. With 58% of the vote already counted and verified, the ANC was in the lead at 75.09%, followed by the DA with 15.71% and the EFF 6.11%.

• Emalahleni local municipality, Mpumalanga. A total of 87% of the votes had been counted and verified. The ANC looked set to retain its hold on the municipality with 56.62%. The DA followed with 28.15% and the EFF 12.09%.

• Polokwane local municipality, Limpopo. The ANC was leading in Polokwane with 64.08% of the vote after 52% of the votes had been counted and verified. The EFF could become the official opposition in the municipality, with 27.67% of the vote thus far, while the DA trailed with 4.62%.

• Mangaung metropolitan municipality, Free State. A total of 86% of the votes had been counted and verified in the metro, with the ANC leading on 57.26%. This was followed by the DA with 24.8% and the EFF with 8.99%.