Mtubatuba council is hung: IFP leads with 18 of 45 seats

Inkosi uMtubatuba, the northern KwaZulu-Natal municipality that includes the town of Mtubatuba, has a hung council. With all 93 voting districts counted, the Inkatha Freedom Party has 18 of the 45 seats, five short of the 23 needed to govern alone (The People's Register, using IEC data dated 15:57 SAST on 8 November 2026; also on ESP and Rateweb).

The IFP won 18 of the 23 wards, but that strong ward showing left it with no PR seats. The MK Party, new to this council, has 10 seats and the ANC 9 (ESP).

Who won how many seats?

Source: The People's Register, IEC allocation 8 November 2026, 15:57 SAST; also ESP and Counted.

Turnout was 56.1% of 112,457 registered voters, with 62,941 PR ballots cast (ESP, citing the IEC).

How did the ward vote split?

Source: ESP, from 62,213 valid ward votes. The IFP's ward vote share is down 3.0 percentage points from 40.7% in 2021 (ESP). On the municipal PR ballot the IFP took 38.8% (24,082 votes), the MK Party 22.1% (13,693) and the ANC 20.3% (12,620) (The People's Register).

Some wards were very close. In Ward 13 the IFP leads the MK Party by 17 votes, and in Ward 14 the ANC leads the IFP by 22 votes (Counted).

How does this compare with 2021?

In 2021 the council also had 45 seats: the IFP had 19 and the ANC 16. This year the IFP has 18, one fewer, while the ANC has dropped from 16 to 9. The MK Party, which did not contest here in 2021, now holds 10 seats (Counted).

On combined ward and PR votes, the IFP's share is 38.2%, down from 42.4% in 2021, and the ANC's share is 20.3%, down from 36.0%. The MK Party has 21.4% (Counted; also Rateweb).

What would it take to reach 23 seats?

This is seat arithmetic, not a prediction. No coalition had been announced in the sources used here.

The IFP, EFF and Siyanqoba Independent Party together have 22 seats, one short of a majority, so any one of the four single-seat parties would take that group to exactly 23. A council without the IFP would need the MK Party, the ANC, the EFF, Siyanqoba Independent Party and the DA all voting together.

When will Mtubatuba get a mayor?

The results are still provisional. The IEC plans to announce the final 2026 local election results at 18:00 on Sunday, 8 November (eNCA), and seat allocations can still change if objections are upheld (IOL).

Once the council is declared, the municipal manager must call the first council meeting within 14 days, where councillors elect a speaker and mayor (Municipal Structures Act; Reported: what happens in a hung council).

How to check your ward result

Use the IEC's results dashboard and search for Inkosi uMtubatuba (KZN275). Results for each ward are also on ESP and The People's Register. Only the IEC's declaration is final.