Local government explained: How municipalities, wards and councillors work
With local elections approaching, voters can better understand how councils are structured and how councillors influence services in their communities.
As South Africa prepares for local government elections on November 4, many voters are asking how local government actually works.
Local government is the sphere of government closest to the people. It is responsible for basic services like water, electricity, refuse removal, roads and housing.
Three types of municipalities
South Africa has 257 municipalities. They are divided into three categories:
Metropolitan municipalities (metros) – these are for big cities like Johannesburg, Tshwane and eThekwini. They cover a large city on their own.
Local municipalities – these are for smaller towns and rural areas. Several local municipalities fall under one district.
District municipalities – these support and co-ordinate local municipalities in their area, especially with bulk services and planning.
Wards and councillors
Every municipality is divided into wards. A ward is a small geographic area with its own community.
Each ward has a ward councillor.
Residents vote for this person directly. The ward councillor represents the ward in council and handles community issues.
The council also has proportional representation (PR) councillors. Parties get these seats based on the total percentage of votes they receive.
This ensures fairness.
Together, ward and PR councillors make up the municipal council.
How the council works
The municipal council is like the parliament of the municipality. It makes decisions and approves budgets and by-laws.
The speaker leads the council and ensures meetings run properly.
The mayor leads the executive and oversees service delivery.
In metros and larger municipalities, a mayoral committee (MMCs) assists the mayor, with each committee responsible for a department like finance, housing, or infrastructure.
The administration, led by the municipal manager, does the day-to-day work of implementing council decisions.
Why it matters for you as a resident
When you vote, you will vote for who represents your ward and which mayoral candidate from which party should govern your municipality.
Those councillors will then be responsible for delivering services where you live.
