THE IFP and the DA are celebrating victories in by-elections that were held in KwaZulu-Natal on Wednesday.
THE IFP and the DA are celebrating victories in by-elections that were held in KwaZulu-Natal on Wednesday.
Independent Electoral Commission chief electoral officer Mawethu Mosery said yesterday that the IFP had won two wards and the DA one.
"The IFP has won two wards in Eshowe and Mbabazane, while the DA has won one ward on the Hibiscus Coast, Port Shepstone. The elections went very well and no incidents of violence were reported," he said.
Mosery said the by-elections followed the deaths of Eshowe and Mbabazane ward councillors from natural causes.
The Hibiscus Coast councillor's membership had been terminated.
DA provincial chairperson John Steenhuisen said he was ecstatic about the "renewed mandate" received by his party.
He said this was a clear indication that people believed the party had taken a correct decision when they dismissed former councillor Eddie Bezuidenhout because the local community was dissatisfied with his performance.
"The support displayed at the polls is a reflection of the community's endorsement of the fact that the DA is the only party willing to address poor performance of any elected public representative," he said.
He said the DA had increased its share of the result from 849 votes to 1209 votes compared to the 2006 local government elections.
The ANC had suffered a sharp decline from 41,4percent to 29,9percent
"It is certainly instructive to note that support for the IFP has collapsed from just under 5percent in the local government elections to 0,8percent in this by-election.
"Cope and VF+ have also failed to inspire even a marginal amount of voter support. This proves once again that South Africa is moving rapidly towards a political landscape dominated by the competing visions of the ANC and the DA," Steenhuisen said.
IFP hails victory in by-election
THE IFP and the DA are celebrating victories in by-elections that were held in KwaZulu-Natal on Wednesday.
THE IFP and the DA are celebrating victories in by-elections that were held in KwaZulu-Natal on Wednesday.
Independent Electoral Commission chief electoral officer Mawethu Mosery said yesterday that the IFP had won two wards and the DA one.
"The IFP has won two wards in Eshowe and Mbabazane, while the DA has won one ward on the Hibiscus Coast, Port Shepstone. The elections went very well and no incidents of violence were reported," he said.
Mosery said the by-elections followed the deaths of Eshowe and Mbabazane ward councillors from natural causes.
The Hibiscus Coast councillor's membership had been terminated.
DA provincial chairperson John Steenhuisen said he was ecstatic about the "renewed mandate" received by his party.
He said this was a clear indication that people believed the party had taken a correct decision when they dismissed former councillor Eddie Bezuidenhout because the local community was dissatisfied with his performance.
"The support displayed at the polls is a reflection of the community's endorsement of the fact that the DA is the only party willing to address poor performance of any elected public representative," he said.
He said the DA had increased its share of the result from 849 votes to 1209 votes compared to the 2006 local government elections.
The ANC had suffered a sharp decline from 41,4percent to 29,9percent
"It is certainly instructive to note that support for the IFP has collapsed from just under 5percent in the local government elections to 0,8percent in this by-election.
"Cope and VF+ have also failed to inspire even a marginal amount of voter support. This proves once again that South Africa is moving rapidly towards a political landscape dominated by the competing visions of the ANC and the DA," Steenhuisen said.