Hung council after 4 November? Parties get 14 days to pick your mayor
After the IEC declares the 4 November results (due by 11 November), new councils must meet within 14 days to elect a speaker and mayor. Here's how it works in hung councils.
Once the IEC declares the 4 November results, every new council has 14 days to hold its first meeting and start electing its speaker and mayor (Municipal Structures Act, section 29). In councils where no party wins more than half the seats, that is all the time parties get to strike coalition deals.
The IEC must declare the results within seven days of voting, so by Wednesday, 11 November (IEC counting factsheet). The 14 days are calendar days, not working days (Daily Maverick). If results are declared on 11 November, the first council meetings must be held by 25 November.
What is a hung council?
It's a council where no single party has a majority of seats, so no party can elect a mayor on its own. Between 2021 and February 2026, 80 of SA's 213 councils were hung at some point, and after the 2021 elections 70 councils were hung, 18 of them in KwaZulu-Natal (PARI).
What happens at the first council meeting?
| Step | Who runs it | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Call the meeting | Municipal manager, or a person the provincial local government MEC designates | Must be within 14 days of the council being declared elected |
| Quorum | A majority of councillors must be present | |
| Elect a speaker | Municipal manager presides | Signed nominations, no debate. One nominee wins unopposed; otherwise a secret ballot |
| Elect the mayor | The new speaker presides | Same nomination and secret ballot process |
Sources: Municipal Structures Act, Daily Maverick
The executive mayor must also be elected within 14 days of the council's election, under section 55 of the Act (SAFLII). Local councils must also send their representatives to district councils within the same 14 days (Daily Maverick).
What if parties can't agree in time?
The meeting can still go ahead and go to a vote, and the result then becomes hard to predict, constitutional law expert Jaap de Visser told SAnews. His advice to councils without a political agreement was to open the first meeting and adjourn it to a later date (SAnews). PARI notes such an adjournment can't last long (PARI).
A mayor can also be elected without a formal coalition. In Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni in November 2021, DA mayoral candidates won with ActionSA and EFF votes, while the DA said it had no deal with either party (PARI).
Is the 14-day rule changing?
Not for this election. The Municipal Structures Amendment Bill would stretch the deadline to 30 days and require coalition agreements to be published in the Provincial Gazette, but Parliament's committee was advised it won't be finalised before the vote, so the 14-day rule stands (PARI).
What does it mean for your area?
Until a speaker and mayor are elected, your new council can't appoint a mayoral committee to run portfolios such as water, electricity and roads (Daily Maverick). Final seat results for your municipality will be on the IEC results site.
FAQ
How long do new councils have to elect a mayor?
The first council meeting must be called within 14 calendar days after the council is declared elected, and an executive mayor must be elected at a meeting within 14 days of the council's election.
When will the 2026 local election results be declared?
The IEC must declare them within seven days of the 4 November vote, so by 11 November 2026.
What happens if no coalition is agreed in 14 days?
The first meeting can still go to a vote, or open and adjourn to a later date while parties negotiate, though not for long.
Has the deadline been extended to 30 days?
No. The amendment bill proposing 30 days was not expected to be finalised before the election, so 14 days applies.