Dikgatlong Local Municipality

Dikgatlong Local Municipality is an administrative area in the Frances Baard District of the Northern Cape in South Africa. Dikgatlong is a Setswana name meaning "confluence", and refers to the place where the Harts and Vaal rivers flow into each other in Delportshoop. The name was used as early as 1700.[4]

Dikgatlong
Local municipality
Seal
Location in the Northern Cape
Coordinates: 28°15′S 24°15′E
Country	South Africa
Province	Northern Cape
District	Frances Baard
Seat	Barkly West
Wards	7
Government [1]
• Type	Municipal council
• Mayor	Ruth Gopane
Area
• Total	7,315 km^2 (2,824 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	46,841
• Density	6.4/km^2 (17/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011) [2]
• Black African	58.5%
• Coloured	28.5%
• Indian/Asian	0.6%
• White	3.6%
First languages (2011) [3]
• Tswana	52.7%
• Afrikaans	39.2%
• English	2.1%
• Sotho	1.7%
• Other	4.3%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Municipal code	NC092

Main places

The 2011 census divided the municipality into the following main places:[5]

Place	Code	Area (km^2)	Population
Barkly West	384013	70.6	8,258
Delportshoop	384005	66.8	4,788
Gong-Gong	384012	5.7	1,045
Holpan	384007	0.6	646
Kutlwano	384003	0.7	3,959
Longlands	384010	6.4	2,933
Mataleng	384014	2.5	11,847
Pniel Estate	384015	1.0	695
Sydney on Vaal	384009	0.6	33
Tidimalo	384006	1.0	5,558
Ulco	384004	9.9	860
Vaalbos National Park	384011	112.5	0
Vaal-Gamagara	384008	0.9	198
Windsorton	384002	50.4	2,291
Remainder	384001	6,985.2	3,727
Total		7,314.7	46,841

Politics

The municipal council consists of thirteen members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Seven councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in seven wards, while the remaining six are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. In the election of 3 August 2016 the African National Congress (ANC) won a majority of nine seats on the council. The following table shows the results of the election.[6][7]

Party		Votes				Seats
		Ward	List	Total	%	Ward	List	Total
	African National Congress	9,059	9,078	18,137	66.6	7	2	9
	Democratic Alliance	2,363	2,410	4,773	17.5	0	2	2
	Economic Freedom Fighters	1,640	1,680	3,320	12.2	0	2	2
	Freedom Front Plus	189	190	379	1.4	0	0	0
	Congress of the People	170	198	368	1.4	0	0	0
	Independent	246	–	246	0.9	0	–	0
Total		13,667	13,556	27,223	100.0	7	6	13
Spoilt votes		257	379	636

In a by-election held on 26 April 2017, a ward previously held by the ANC was won by an independent candidate.[8] Council composition was reconfigured as seen below:

Party		Ward	PR list	Total
	African National Congress	6	2	8
	Democratic Alliance	0	2	2
	Economic Freedom Fighters	0	2	2
	Independent	1	–	1
Total		7	6	13

References

1. "Contact list: Executive Mayors". Government Communication & Information System. Archived from the original on 14 July 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
2. "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
3. "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
4. South African Languages - Place names
5. "Dikgatlong Local Municipality". Census 2011.
6. "Results Summary – All Ballots: Dikgatlong" (PDF). Independent Electoral Commission. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
7. "Seat Calculation Detail: Dikgatlong" (PDF). Independent Electoral Commission. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
8. "29 Apr ANC lost ward 2 at Dikgatlong Municipality during by-elections". SABC News. 29 April 2017.