Emthanjeni Local Municipality

Emthanjeni Municipality (Afrikaans: Emthanjeni Munisipaliteit; Xhosa: uMasipala wase Emthanjeni) is a local municipality within the Pixley ka Seme District Municipality, in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. Emthanjeni is a Xhosa word meaning "vein", symbolising the importance of an underground water supply system to the area.^[4] It is also a translation of the name of the municipality's seat, De Aar.

Emthanjeni
Local municipality
Seal
Location in the Northern Cape
Coordinates: 30°40′S 24°0′E
Country	South Africa
Province	Northern Cape
District	Pixley ka Seme
Seat	De Aar
Wards	8
Government [1]
• Type	Municipal council
• Mayor	Boy Kenneth Markman
Area
• Total	13,472 km2 (5,202 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]
• Total	46,587
• Density	3.5/km2 (9.0/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2022) [3]
• Black African	32.0%
• Coloured	59.9%
• Indian/Asian	0.8%
• White	7.3%
First languages (2011) [3]
• Afrikaans	70.3%
• Xhosa	23.8%
• English	2.3%
• Other	3.6%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Municipal code	NC073
Website	emthanjeni.co.za

Main places

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

Place	Code	Area (km2)	Population	Most spoken language
Britstown	371002	61.47	3,843	Afrikaans
De Aar	371004	84.23	23,760	Afrikaans
Hanover	371006	80.77	4,594	Afrikaans
Mziwabantu	371001	1,08	1,302	Xhosa/Afrikaans
Nonzwakazi	371005	1.27	6,230	Xhosa
Remainder of the municipality	371003	13,243.48	2,626	Afrikaans

Demographics

According to the 2022 South African census, the population of the municipality was 46,587 people. Of these, 59.9% identified as "Coloured," 32.0% as "Black African," and 7.3% as "White."^[6]

Politics

Main article: Emthanjeni Local Municipality elections

The municipal council consists of fifteen members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Eight councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in eight wards, while the remaining seven 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 1 November 2021 the African National Congress (ANC) won a majority of nine seats on the council.^[7][8]

The following table shows the results of the election.

Emthanjeni local election, 1 November 2021
Party		Votes				Seats
		Ward	List	Total	%	Ward	List	Total
	African National Congress	6,784	6,809	13,593	60.3%	7	2	9
	Democratic Alliance	2,932	3,055	5,987	26.6%	1	3	4
	Economic Freedom Fighters	484	548	1,032	4.6%	0	1	1
	Patriotic Alliance	380	608	988	4.4%	0	1	1
	Freedom Front Plus	260	294	554	2.5%	0	0	0
	Independent candidates	386	–	386	1.7%	0	–	0
Total		11,226	11,314	22,540		8	7	15
Valid votes		11,226	11,314	22,540	98.5%
Spoilt votes		178	157	335	1.5%
Total votes cast		11,404	11,471	22,875
Voter turnout		11,566
Registered voters		22,544
Turnout percentage		51.3%