Secunda's council is hung: DA won more votes, ANC got more seats
Govan Mbeki (Secunda) has a hung council. The DA won 31.2% of the ward vote to the ANC's 26.2%, but the ANC has 23 of 65 seats to the DA's 18 because it won 23 wards. A party needs 33 to govern. IEC final results are due Sunday at 18:00.
Govan Mbeki, the Mpumalanga municipality that runs Secunda, eMbalenhle, Trichardt, Bethal and Kinross, has a hung council. With all 104 voting districts counted, the ANC has 23 of the 65 seats and the DA 18. A party needs 33 to govern alone (The People's Register; ESP).
The odd part: the DA got more votes. It took 31.2% of the ward ballot, up from 26.6% in 2021, against the ANC's 26.2% (ESP). The ANC still ends up with five more seats.
Who won how many seats?
| Party | Ward seats | PR seats | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| ANC | 23 | 0 | 23 |
| DA | 10 | 8 | 18 |
| MK Party | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| EFF | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| Freedom Front Plus | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Service Delivery Party | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| SACP | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| IFP | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| African Independent Congress | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| ATM | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Sources: The People's Register (IEC allocation as at 08:46 on 8 November), ESP.
Turnout was 50.2% of about 155,000 registered voters (ESP).
Why does the ANC have more seats with fewer votes?
Wards. The council has 33 ward seats and 32 PR seats. The ANC won 23 of the wards and the DA 10 (ESP).
PR seats are meant to top each party up to its share of the total vote. The ANC's share (about 26%) is worth roughly 17 of the 65 seats, but it already holds 23 ward seats. A party keeps every ward it wins, so the ANC gets no PR seats and the remaining PR seats are shared among the other parties (Municipal Structures Act, Schedule 1; Reported: how council seats are calculated).
That is why the DA's 18 seats are made up of 10 wards plus 8 PR seats, while the MK Party (12.0%) and EFF (8.5%) won no wards but still get 7 and 5 seats.
What would it take to reach 33 seats?
This is seat arithmetic from the provisional allocation, not a prediction of any deal:
| Combination | Seats | Majority (33)? |
|---|---|---|
| ANC + DA | 41 | Yes |
| ANC + MK Party + EFF | 35 | Yes |
| DA + MK Party + EFF + Freedom Front Plus | 34 | Yes |
| ANC + MK Party | 30 | Three short |
| DA + MK Party + EFF | 30 | Three short |
Source: seat totals from The People's Register.
The ANC governed Govan Mbeki after the 2021 election (Counted). No coalition had been announced in the sources used here.
When will Govan Mbeki get a mayor?
The IEC announces the final national results at 18:00 today, Sunday 8 November, in Midrand (eNCA). Until then the seat figures are provisional.
After the declaration, the municipal manager must call the first council sitting within 14 days, where councillors elect a speaker and mayor (Municipal Structures Act; Reported: what happens in a hung council). The current administration keeps running services and billing until then.
How to check your ward result
Search for Govan Mbeki (MP307) on the IEC's results dashboard. Ward-by-ward figures are also on ESP and The People's Register. Only the IEC's declaration is final.
FAQ
Is Govan Mbeki (Secunda) a hung council after the 2026 election?
Yes, on the provisional IEC allocation. The ANC has 23 of 65 seats and the DA 18, and no party has the 33 needed to govern alone. The IEC declares final results on Sunday 8 November at 18:00.
Why did the DA get more votes but fewer seats than the ANC in Govan Mbeki?
The ANC won 23 of the 33 wards. A party keeps every ward it wins, even if that is more seats than its vote share would give it, so the ANC gets no PR seats while the DA gets 10 wards plus 8 PR seats.
How many seats did each party win in Govan Mbeki?
ANC 23, DA 18, MK Party 7, EFF 5, Freedom Front Plus 4, Service Delivery Party 3, SACP 2, and one each for the IFP, African Independent Congress and ATM.
When will Govan Mbeki elect a mayor?
After the IEC declares the result, the municipal manager must call the first council meeting within 14 days, where the speaker and mayor are elected.