PA refuses ANC the Upington mayor job. Who can still reach 17 seats

The Patriotic Alliance says it will not hand the ANC the mayor's chair in Dawid Kruiper, the Northern Cape municipality that includes Upington, and would rather sit in opposition. That leaves the ANC with no route to a majority in the town unless it does a deal with the DA.

PA leader Gayton McKenzie told supporters in a Facebook live address on Tuesday night that talks with the ANC in the Northern Cape went well until Dawid Kruiper came up. "The ANC said this is the red line, Dawid Kruiper or nothing. We rather go to opposition," he said, according to the Cape Argus.

In a video reported by The Citizen on 13 November, he went further: "We will not be working with the ANC... in the Northern Cape, we will go into opposition."

What are the seat numbers in Dawid Kruiper?

The 33-seat council is hung. A party or coalition needs 17 seats to elect a mayor and pass a budget (Rateweb, IEC results; The Outlier).

Sources: Rateweb (IEC data), The Outlier

The DA narrowly won the vote, with 41.7% to the ANC's 41.2% (Rateweb). It's a big fall for the ANC, which won 18 seats and 55.5% of the ward vote in 2021. The PA got 0.2% then and no seats (Inside Metros).

Who can still reach 17 seats?

The PA's four seats are enough to push either big party over the line. Without them, only an ANC and DA deal works.

Seat totals worked out by Reported from the IEC results via Rateweb.

Upington community paper Cape Coast News reported on 11 November that a DA, PA and FF Plus coalition was now possible, and that the PA and DA were expected to meet. Neither party had announced a deal by Friday midday.

McKenzie also indicated the PA would not give in to the DA in negotiations, so a DA and PA deal is not a given (Cape Argus).

Could Upington go back to the polls?

Both sides have floated it. McKenzie told supporters the ANC in the Northern Cape said it was willing to go for re-elections where it can't form the coalition it wants (The Citizen). He also said the PA was ready for a by-election if no deal is reached at Dawid Kruiper (Cape Argus).

Nobody has formally asked for a new election, and the council still has to meet first. The Municipal Structures Act requires the first council sitting, where the speaker and mayor are elected, within 14 days of the IEC declaring the results (Municipal Structures Act; IOL). The IEC declared the final results on 8 November.

What does the ANC say?

The ANC has said all coalition talks are now handled nationally, The Citizen reported. Its national executive committee is meeting in Boksburg and is expected to announce its plan after the meeting ends on Saturday (The Citizen).

Reported could not find a public response from the ANC in the Northern Cape to McKenzie's comments on Dawid Kruiper by Friday midday. We'll update this article when there is one, or when a mayor is elected.

Is it only Upington?

No. McKenzie said the ANC in the province was insisting on the mayor's post in several municipalities, with Dawid Kruiper the main sticking point (The Citizen). The ANC also lost its outright majority in Sol Plaatje (Kimberley) this year (Inside Metros).