UMhlathuze Local Municipality

{{lowercase title}} {{Infobox settlement | name = uMhlathuze | official_name = | other_name = | native_name = | settlement_type = [[Local municipality (South Africa)|Local municipality]] | image_seal = uMhlathuze_CoA.png | seal_size = 150x100px | image_map = Map of KwaZulu-Natal with Umhlathuze highlighted.svg | mapsize = | map_alt = Location in KwaZulu-Natal | map_caption = Location in [[KwaZulu-Natal]] | coordinates = | coordinates_footnotes =  | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = [[South Africa]] | subdivision_type1 = Province | subdivision_name1 = [[KwaZulu-Natal]] | subdivision_type2 = [[Districts of South Africa|District]] | subdivision_name2 = [[King Cetshwayo District Municipality|King Cetshwayo]] | seat = [[Richards Bay]] | parts_type = [[Ward (South Africa)|Wards]] | parts = 30 | government_footnotes = <ref name="muni_mayor">{{cite web |url=http://www.gcis.gov.za/gcis/gcis_list.jsp?id=14&heading=Executive%20Mayors |title=Contact list: Executive Mayors |publisher=Government Communication & Information System |access-date=22 February 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100714013749/http://www.gcis.gov.za/gcis/gcis_list.jsp?id=14&heading=Executive%20Mayors |archive-date=14 July 2010 }}</ref> | government_type = [[Municipal council]] | leader_party = [[Inkatha Freedom Party|IFP]] | leader_title = Mayor | leader_name = [[Xolani Ngwezi]]<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-12-10|title=City of uMhlathuze elects new mayor|url=https://zululandobserver.co.za/262012/city-of-umhlathuze-elects-new-mayor/|access-date=2022-01-12|website=Zululand Observer|language=en-US}}</ref> | leader_title1 = Deputy Mayor | leader_name1 = vacant | leader_title2 = | leader_name2 =  | area_footnotes = | area_total_km2 = 793 | population_footnotes = <ref name="s068">{{cite web | title=uMhlathuze (Local Municipality, South Africa) | website=Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location | date=2022-02-02 | url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/southafrica/admin/kwazulu_natal/KZN282__umhlathuze/ | access-date=2024-08-09}}</ref> | population_total = 412,075 | population_as_of = 2022 | population_rank = | population_density_km2 = auto | demographics_type1 = Racial makeup {{nobold|(2022)}} | demographics1_footnotes = <ref name="s068">{{cite web | title=uMhlathuze (Local Municipality, South Africa) | website=Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location | date=2022-02-02 | url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/southafrica/admin/kwazulu_natal/KZN282__umhlathuze/ | access-date=2024-08-09}}</ref> | demographics1_title1 = {{nobold|[[Bantu-speaking peoples of South Africa|Black African]]}} | demographics1_info1 = 87.7% | demographics1_title2 = {{nobold|[[Coloureds|Coloured]]}} | demographics1_info2 = 0.9% | demographics1_title3 = {{nobold|[[Indian South African|Indian]]/[[Asian South African|Asian]]}} | demographics1_info3 = 3.7% | demographics1_title4 = {{nobold|[[White South African|White]]}} | demographics1_info4 = 7.5% | demographics_type2 = [[First language]]s {{nobold|(2022)}} | demographics2_footnotes = <ref name="muni_population">{{cite web |url=http://www.statssa.gov.za/?page_id=964 |title=Statistics by place |publisher=Statistics South Africa |access-date=27 September 2015}}</ref> | demographics2_title1 = {{nobold|[[Zulu language|Zulu]]}} | demographics2_info1 = 61.3% | demographics2_title2 = {{nobold|[[English language|English]]}} | demographics2_info2 = 19.7% | demographics2_title3 = {{nobold|[[Afrikaans]]}} | demographics2_info3 = 15.1% | demographics2_title4 = {{nobold|[[Southern Ndebele language|Southern Ndebele]]}} | demographics2_info4 = 1.2% | demographics2_title5 = {{nobold|Other}} | demographics2_info5 = 2.7% | timezone1 = [[South African Standard Time|SAST]] | utc_offset1 = +2 | blank_name_sec1 = Municipal code | blank_info_sec1 = KZN282

| footnotes = }} '''uMhlathuze Local Municipality''' is an administrative area in the [[King Cetshwayo District Municipality]] of [[KwaZulu-Natal]] in [[South Africa]]. The municipality is named after the [[Mhlatuze River]].<ref>[http://www.salanguages.com/munnames.htm South African Languages - Place names]</ref>

The municipality was enlarged at the time of the [[South African municipal election, 2016]] when part of the disbanded [[Ntambanana Local Municipality]] was merged into it.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://zululandobserver.co.za/109381/ntambanana-municipality-to-dissolve-in-september/|title=Ntambanana municipality to dissolve in September|publisher=Zululand Observer|date=22 April 2016}}</ref>

==Main places== The [[South African National Census of 2024|2024 census]] divided the municipality into the following [[Populated place|main places]]:<ref>[http://www.statssa.gov.za/census01/html/lookuptables1.zip Lookup Tables - Statistics South Africa]</ref> {| class="wikitable sortable" ! Place !! Code !! Area (km<sup>2</sup>)!! Population |- | [[Bejani]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53801 53801]||12.82||4,654 |- | [[Dube, KwaZulu-Natal|Dube]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53802 53802]||53.95||52,239 |- | [[Empangeni]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53803 53803]||14.00||13,306 |- | [[ESikhawini|Esikhawini]]|| [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53804 53804]||5.90||32,437 |- | [[Khoza]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53805 53805]||14.32||24,172 |- | [[Kwambonambi Forest Reserve]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53806 53806]||56.58||117 |- | [[Mkhwanazi]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53807 53807]||66.29||22,758 |- | [[Nkwanazi]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53808 53808]||31.86||25,780 |- | [[Nseleni]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53809 53809]||1.30||8,873 |- | [[Richards Bay]] Part 1 || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53810 53810]||75.80||30,605 |- | [[Richards Bay]] Part 2 || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53811 53811]||0.42||382 |- | [[Richards Bay]] Part 3 || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53812 53812]||21.19||13,865 |- | [[Umlalazi Nature Reserve]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53814 53814]||27.89||347 |- | [[Vulindlela]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53815 53815]||2.44||4,044 |- | [[Zungu/Madlebe]] || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53816 53816]||71.06||48,977 |- | ''Remainder of the municipality'' || [http://census.adrianfrith.com/place/53813 53813]||339.73||6,630 |}

== Politics == {{main|uMhlathuze Local Municipality elections}} The municipal council consists of sixty-seven members elected by [[mixed-member proportional representation]]. Thirty-four councillors are elected by [[first-past-the-post voting]] in thirty-four [[ward (South Africa)|wards]], while the remaining thirty-three are chosen from [[party list]]s so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received.

In the [[2021 South African municipal elections]] the [[African National Congress]] (ANC) lost its majority, winning a plurality of twenty-seven seats on the council. The following table shows the results of the election.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Election Result Table for LGE2021 — uMhlathuze |url=https://wikitable.frith.dev/lge2021/KZN282 |access-date=2021-11-20 |website=wikitable.frith.dev}}</ref> {{Election results |firstround=Ward |secondround=List |party1=[[African National Congress]] |votes1=33827 |votes1_2=32396 |seats1=20 |seats1_2=7 |totseats1=27 |party2=[[Inkatha Freedom Party]] |votes2=28714 |votes2_2=29303 |seats2=10 |seats2_2=13 |totseats2=23 |party3=[[Democratic Alliance (South Africa)|Democratic Alliance]] |votes3=9889 |votes3_2=9854 |seats3=4 |seats3_2=4 |totseats3=8 |party4=[[Economic Freedom Fighters]] |votes4=7627 |votes4_2=7768 |seats4=0 |seats4_2=6 |totseats4=6 |party5=[[National Freedom Party]] |votes5=771 |votes5_2=760 |seats5=0 |seats5_2=1 |totseats5=1 |party6=[[African Christian Democratic Party]] |votes6=713 |votes6_2=729 |seats6=0 |seats6_2=1 |totseats6=1 |party7=[[Freedom Front Plus]] |votes7=541 |votes7_2=608 |seats7=0 |seats7_2=1 |totseats7=1 |party8=[[African Independent Congress]] |votes8=27 |votes8_2=876 |seats8=0 |seats8_2=0 |totseats8=0 |party9=[[Abantu Batho Congress]] |votes9=302 |votes9_2=289 |seats9=0 |seats9_2=0 |totseats9=0 |party10=[[African People's Movement]] |votes10=300 |votes10_2=286 |seats10=0 |seats10_2=0 |totseats10=0 |party11=[[Justice and Employment Party]] |votes11=240 |votes11_2=316 |seats11=0 |seats11_2=0 |totseats11=0 |party12=[[Independent candidates]] |votes12=446 |votes12_2= |seats12=0 |seats12_2= |totseats12=0 |party13=[[South Africa Vuka Movement]] |votes13=197 |votes13_2=166 |seats13=0 |seats13_2=0 |totseats13=0 |party14=[[United Christian Democratic Party]] |votes14=118 |votes14_2=79 |seats14=0 |seats14_2=0 |totseats14=0 |party15=[[Black First Land First]] |votes15=74 |votes15_2=101 |seats15=0 |seats15_2=0 |totseats15=0 |party16=[[African Transformation Movement]] |votes16=45 |votes16_2=123 |seats16=0 |seats16_2=0 |totseats16=0 |party17=[[United Independent Movement]] |votes17=11 |votes17_2=91 |seats17=0 |seats17_2=0 |totseats17=0 |party18=[[Congregational Christian Unity]] |votes18=40 |votes18_2=29 |seats18=0 |seats18_2=0 |totseats18=0 |invalid=1092 |invalid2=1159 |electorate=192916 |electorate2=192916 }}

===By-elections=== The following [[by-election]]s were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period from the election in November 2021.

{|class="wikitable" |- ! Date !! Ward !!colspan=2| Party of the previous councillor !!colspan=2| Party of the newly elected councillor |- | 14 September 2022<ref>{{Cite web |title=Municipal By-elections results - Electoral Commission of South Africa |url=https://results.elections.org.za/home/Downloads/MBE-Results |access-date=2022-09-15 |website=results.elections.org.za}}</ref> | 12 | {{Full party name with color |African National Congress}} | {{Full party name with color |Inkatha Freedom Party}} |- |} The by-election took place after the [[African National Congress]] (ANC) representative, facing community pressure, resigned. With the victory, the [[Inkatha Freedom Party]] solidified its coalition hold on council.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sussman |first=Wayne |date=2022-09-15 |title=SEPTEMBER BY-ELECTIONS: DA triumphs in Prince Albert nail-biter while IFP bucks trend to shock ANC in KZN |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-09-15-da-wins-prince-albert-nail-biter-while-ifp-bucks-trend-to-shock-anc-in-kzn/ |access-date=2022-09-15 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}}</ref>

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== * https://www.umhlathuze.gov.za/

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[[Category:Local municipalities of the King Cetshwayo District Municipality]]