Drakenstein Local Municipality

Drakenstein
Local municipality

Seal
The Drakenstein Local Municipality is located in the Cape Winelands district around the town of Paarl, to the east of Cape Town.
Location in the Western Cape
Coordinates: 33°30′S 19°00′E / 33.500°S 19.000°ECoordinates: 33°30′S 19°00′E / 33.500°S 19.000°E
Country South Africa
Province Western Cape
District Cape Winelands
Seat Paarl
Wards 31
Government[1]
  Type Municipal council
  Mayor Gesie van Deventer (DA)
Area
  Total 1,538 km2 (594 sq mi)
Population (2011)[2]
  Total 251,262
  Density 160/km2 (420/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)[2]
  Black African 22.7%
  Coloured 62.5%
  Indian/Asian 0.4%
  White 13.5%
First languages (2011)[3]
  Afrikaans 75.0%
  Xhosa 16.7%
  English 5.1%
  Other 3.2%
Time zone SAST (UTC+2)
Municipal code WC023

Drakenstein Municipality is a local municipality located within the Cape Winelands District Municipality, in the Western Cape province of South Africa. As of 2011 it had a population of 251,262.[2] Its municipality code is WC023.

Geography

The municipality covers a total area of 1,538 square kilometres (594 sq mi) in the valley of the Berg River to the west of the Boland mountain ranges. It stretches about 75 kilometres (47 mi) from Saron in the north to beyond Paarl in the south. It abuts on the Witzenberg Municipality and Breede Valley Municipality to the east, the Stellenbosch Municipality to the south, the City of Cape Town and the Swartland Municipality to the west, and the Bergrivier Municipality to the north.

According to the 2011 census the municipality has a population of 251,262 people in 59,774 households. Of this population, 62.5% describe themselves as "Coloured", 22.7% as "Black African", and 13.5% as "White". The first language of 75.0% of the population is Afrikaans, while 16.7% speak Xhosa and 5.1% speak English.[4]

The principal town and location of the municipal headquarters is Paarl, situated in the south of the municipality, which as of 2011 has a population of 112,045 people. Paarl is the southernmost part of a continuous built-up area along the Berg River which also includes Mbekweni (pop. 30,875) and Wellington (pop. 55,543). In the northern part of the municipality are the smaller towns of Gouda (pop. 3,441) and Saron (pop. 7,843).

Politics

Results of the 2011 Municipal Elections
  DA (35)
  ANC (19)
  COPE (2)
  NPP (2)
  Other parties (3)

The municipal council consists of sixty-one members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Thirty-one councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in thirty-one wards, while the remaining thirty 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 18 May 2011 the Democratic Alliance (DA) obtained a majority of thirty-five seats on the council.

The following table shows the results of the 2011 election.[5][6]

Party Votes Seats
Ward List Total % Ward List Total
Democratic Alliance 41,828 42,707 84,535 56.9 22 13 35
African National Congress 22,604 23,214 45,818 30.8 9 10 19
National People's Party 2,833 2,691 5,524 3.7 0 2 2
Congress of the People 2,304 2,336 4,640 3.1 0 2 2
Independent 1,743 1,743 1.2 0 0
African Christian Democratic Party 679 801 1,480 1.0 0 1 1
South African Progressive Civic Organisation 564 502 1,066 0.7 0 1 1
People's Democratic Movement 551 459 1,010 0.7 0 1 1
United Christian Democratic Party 329 283 612 0.4 0 0 0
Khoisan Party 262 298 560 0.4 0 0 0
Democratic Christian Party 207 307 514 0.3 0 0 0
Freedom Front Plus 298 214 512 0.3 0 0 0
African Bond of Unity 146 120 266 0.2 0 0 0
Western Cape Community 93 113 206 0.1 0 0 0
National Independent Civic Organisation 22 124 146 0.1 0 0 0
Total 74,463 74,169 148,632 100.0 31 30 61
Spoilt votes 674 893 1,567

The local council sends eight representatives to the council of the Cape Winelands District Municipality: five from the Democratic Alliance and three from the African National Congress.[7]

References

  1. "Contact list: Executive Mayors". Government Communication & Information System. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Table: Census 2011 by district council, gender, age in 5 year groups and population group". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
  3. "Table: Census 2011 by district council, gender, language and population group". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
  4. "Drakenstein Local Municipality". Census 2011.
  5. "Results Summary – All Ballots: Drakenstein" (PDF). Independent Electoral Commission. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  6. "Seat Calculation Detail: Drakenstein" (PDF). Independent Electoral Commission. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  7. "Political composition of councils" (PDF). Western Cape Department of Local Government. August 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2012.

External links