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Plettenberg Bay is the seat of the Bitou municipality
Plettenberg Bay is the seat of the Bitou municipalityPicture: SUPPLIED

DA and ANC lose ground across 13 seats in hung Bitou council

Bitou’s next government will be decided at the negotiating table

Smaller parties open to talks as major players fall short of council majority

  • Siphokazi Mnyobe
2 min read

No party won an outright majority in Bitou, so coalition talks will decide who runs the next administration.

SummaryOpen the quick read
  • No party secured an outright majority in Bitou's 13-seat council, paving the way for multi-party coalition negotiations.
  • The Democratic Alliance remains the largest party with five seats, whilst the African National Congress holds three seats.
  • Smaller parties, including the Active United Front and the Plett Democratic Congress, are ready to negotiate partnerships focused on service delivery.
  • The Ikhwezi Political Movement, Patriotic Alliance, and Freedom Front Plus each won one council seat.
  • The ANC has reserved official comment until final results are formally declared by the Electoral Commission of SA.

No party won an outright majority in Bitou, so coalition talks will decide who runs the next administration.

Two of the smaller parties say they are ready to negotiate.

Mavis Busakwe of the Active United Front (AUF), Claude Terblanche, leader of the Plett Democratic Congress (PDC), and Ikhwezi Political Movement (IPM) spokesperson Lawrance Luiters said they would talk to any party that shares their priorities.

Busakwe said the AUF would work with any party whose manifesto aligns with its own, particularly on improving service delivery in Plettenberg Bay’s communities.

She said the party was delighted to have kept its council seat, given how many parties contested the election.

“We are grateful to the people who voted for us.

"This means they trust us to be their voice in council.

"We will continue to bring them services as we were doing before,” she said.

Terblanche said keeping Ward 4 had not been easy.

“I am extremely grateful for the support and votes I received from the community.

"Retaining a ward was not easy, but I have worked hard since 2021 to bring change to this community and serve the people who trusted my party and me with their votes.

“We have projects that still need to be implemented in this community, and I want to ensure that our people benefit from them.

“For this reason, I am willing to listen to other political parties.

"I want to work together with others to bring services to the people of Ward 4,” he said.

Luiters said the results demonstrated that IPM continued to grow.

"This is a clear indication that more residents believe in our vision of development, accountable leadership, and service delivery.

"IPM also values the great and stable coalition we have built with our current partners. We remain committed to constructive, people-centred governance and are open to coalition talks with any organisation that aligns with this vision."

Bitou has seven wards, and the council has 13 seats.

The DA is the largest party with five seats and 33.7% of the vote, down from 40.36% in 2021.

They won three wards.

The ANC fell from 29.09% in 2021 to 20.79%, and from four seats to three.

The ANC won three wards.

The AUF rose from 9.03% to 9.61% and kept its single seat.

The PDC rose from 6.51% to 8.74% and held ward 4.

The Ikhwezi Political Movement (IPM), PA and FF+ each won one seat.

Bitou ANC spokesperson Sandiso Gcabayi said the party would comment only once the Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) released the official results.

The DA, IPM and FF+ had not responded to requests for comment by the time of publication.

The Herald