How to Contest Municipal Elections : Electoral Commission

Organisation : Electoral Commission Government of South Africa
Type of Facility : How to Contest Municipal Elections
Head Office : Centurion

Website : http://www.elections.org.za/content/Parties/How-to-contest-municipal-elections/

How to Contest Municipal Elections :

** This page provides guidelines to independent and party candidates wishing to contest municipal elections.
** This page does not replace or obviate the legal requirements that must be met by candidates.

Municipal councils :
** The term of municipal councils is 5 years.

There are 3 types of Municipal Councils in South Africa :
Category A: 8 Metropolitan Councils;
Category B: 205 Local Councils (LC); and
Category C: 44 District Councils (DC) (have executive and legislative powers in areas that include local municipalities)

Types of municipal elections :
** Elections are contested in every municipality but the type of election is determined by the category of that municipality.

For metropolitan municipalities, there are 2 types of elections in each ward :
** Metropolitan council ward, and
** Metropolitan proportional representation.

In all local municipalities other than metropolitan municipalities, there are 3 types of elections in each ward :
** Local council ward;
** Local council proportional representation; and
** District council proportional representation.

Contesting municipal elections :
Independent and party ward candidates can contest :
** a metropolitan council ward
** or
** a local council ward.

Registered parties can contest :
** the metropolitan council proportional representation elections
** or
** the local council and district council proportional representation elections.

Membership of Municipal Councils :
Every citizen who is qualified to vote for a municipal council is eligible to stand and to be elected as a member of that council, unless that person :
** is in the service of that municipality and receives remuneration from that municipality and has not been exempted from disqualification in terms of national legislation;

** is appointed by, or is in the service of the state in another sphere and receives remuneration for that appointment and has been disqualified from membership of a Municipal Council in terms of national legislation;

** is disqualified from voting for the National Assembly;
** has been declared an unrehabilitated insolvent;
** has been declared to be of unsound mind by a court of the Republic;

** is convicted of an offence and sentenced to more than twelve 12 months imprisonment without the option of a fine either in the Republic , or outside of the Republic if the conduct constituting the offence would have been an offence in the Republic and a period of 5 years has not elapsed since the sentence was completed;

** is a member of the National Assembly, a delegate to the National Council of Provinces or a member of the provincial legislature, unless that person is a member of the municipal council representing local government in the National Council; or

** is a member of another Municipal Council other than a Municipal Council representing that Council in a Municipal Council of a different category.

Deadlines :
** Once the election date has been proclaimed, the Electoral Commission (IEC) publishes an election timetable with deadlines that candidates and parties must meet.