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Knysna Local Municipality

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Template:Infobox South African municipality Knysna Local Municipality is a municipality part of Garden Route District Municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. As of 2011 the population is 68,659.[1] Its municipal code is WC048.

Geography

The municipality covers an area of 1,109 square kilometres (428 sq mi) between the Indian Ocean and the Outeniqua Mountains around the town of Knysna. It abuts on the George Municipality to the north and west, and on the Bitou Municipality to the east.

According to the 2011 census the municipality has a population of 68,659 people in 21,893 households. Of this population, 40.9% describe themselves as "Coloured", 36.1% as "Black African", and 21.0% as "White". The first language of 51.2% of the population is Afrikaans, while 28.4% speak Xhosa and 15.4% speak English.[2]

Most of the residents of the municipality live in the town of Knysna, which as of 2011 has a population of 51,078. Knysna is situated on the shores of the Knysna Lagoon; other coastal settlements are Sedgefield (pop. 8,361) and Buffelsbaai (pop. 71). Away from the coast are agricultural settlements at Rheenendal (pop. 3,936) and Karatara (pop. 880).

Politics

The municipal council consists of twenty-one members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Eleven councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in eleven wards, while the remaining ten are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. In the election of 3 August 2016 no party obtained a majority of seats on the council. The Democratic Alliance (with ten seats) formed a coalition with the African Christian Democratic Party (one seat) and an independent councillor.[3]

The following table shows the results of the 2016 election.[4][5][6]

style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #005BA6;" data-sort-value="Democratic Alliance (South Africa)" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #006600;" data-sort-value="African National Congress" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #FFCA08;" data-sort-value="Congress of the People (South African political party)" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #DCDCDC;" data-sort-value="Independent (politics)" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #F8F9FA;" data-sort-value="Knysna Unity Congress" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #ba0c2f;" data-sort-value="African Christian Democratic Party" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #852A2A;" data-sort-value="Economic Freedom Fighters" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #999999;" data-sort-value="Independent Civic Organisation of South Africa" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #ffb543;" data-sort-value="African Independent Congress" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #FF6600;" data-sort-value="Freedom Front Plus" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: Lightblue;" data-sort-value="Ubuntu Party" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #F8F9FA;" data-sort-value="South African Religious Civic Organisation" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #E9F294;" data-sort-value="Plaaslike Besorgde Inwoners" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #F8F9FA;" data-sort-value="Democratic New Civic Association" | style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #F8F9FA;" data-sort-value="South Africa Civics" |
Party Votes Seats
Ward List Total % Ward List Total
DA 12,098 12,489 24,587 49.6% 6 4 10
ANC 7,777 8,153 15,930 32.1% 3 4 7
COPE 1,430 1,402 2,832 5.7% 1 0 1
Independent 1,462 1,462 2.9% 1 1
Knysna Unity Congress 535 503 1,038 2.1% 0 1 1
ACDP 462 436 898 1.8% 0 1 1
EFF 427 420 847 1.7% 0 0 0
Independent Civic Organisation 350 350 700 1.4% 0 0 0
AIC 164 336 500 1.0% 0 0 0
VF+ 209 175 384 0.8% 0 0 0
Ubuntu Party 111 52 163 0.3% 0 0 0
South African Religious Civic Organisation 36 36 72 0.1% 0 0 0
Plaaslike Besorgde Inwoners 25 44 69 0.1% 0 0 0
Democratic New Civic Association 49 49 0.1% 0 0
South Africa Civics 12 22 34 0.1% 0 0 0
Total 25,147 24,418 49,565 11 10 21
Valid votes 25,147 24,418 49,565 97.7%
Spoilt votes 287 886 1,173 2.3%
Total votes cast 25,434 25,304 50,738
Voter turnout 25,518
Registered voters 40,014
Turnout percentage 63.8%

The local council sends three representatives to the council of the Garden Route District Municipality. As of February 2017 this delegation consisted of two councillors from the Democratic Alliance and one from the African National Congress.

History

Joy Cole was first elected mayor under the DA in December 2000 but defected in the September 2004 floor-crossing to become an ANC-aligned independent and reconstituted the council under ANC control. Cole formed a broad-based coalition of the ANC and DA after the March 2006 local government elections when neither party had obtained an outright majority. After Cole resigned in December 2006 to pursue another career, Doris Wakeford-Brown of the DA formed a multi-party coalition. This short-lived coalition collapsed in May 2007 when the Knysna Civic Alliance switched allegiances to the ANC, which brought Eleanore Bouw-Spies in as the new mayor. In the September 2007 floor crossing window the two civic party councillors defected to the ANC, giving the party an outright majority of 9 seats out of 16. Bouw-Spies' term as mayor ended when the DA won an absolute majority in the 2011 election and Georlene Wolmarans was elected mayor. In the 2016 election the DA fell short of an absolute majority, but formed a coalition with the ACDP and an independent councillor. Bouw-Spies, who had crossed to the DA in 2014, returned for a second term as mayor.[7]

Mayors

  • Charles Thobi (2002–2004)
  • Joy Cole (December 2000 – September 2004) (DA)
  • Joy Cole (September 2004 – March 2006) (Independent)
  • Joy Cole (March 2006 – December 2006) (ANC)
  • Doris Wakeford-Brown (December 2006 – May 2007) (DA)
  • Eleanore Bouw-Spies (May 2007 – May 2011) (ANC)
  • Georlene Wolmarans (May 2011 – August 2016) (DA)
  • Eleanore Bouw-Spies (August 2016 – June 2018) (DA)
  • Mark Willemse (June 2018 – present)

References

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference muni_population was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Knysna Local Municipality". Census 2011.
  3. ^ "Political composition of councils February 2017" (PDF). Western Cape Department of Local Government. February 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  4. ^ "Results Summary – All Ballots: Knysna" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  5. ^ "Seat Calculation Detail: Knysna" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  6. ^ "Voter Turnout Report: Knysna" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  7. ^ "DA falls short of a majority in Knysna". The Citizen. ANA. 5 August 2016. Retrieved 5 June 2017.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Knysna_Local_Municipality&oldid=857063791"