-
The Municipal Demarcation Board has officially handed over the 2026/27 Local Government Election ward boundaries to the Electoral Commission, a major milestone on South Africa’s road to the polls.
The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) says the outstanding wards in four KwaZulu-Natal municipalities due to litigation will not affect next year’s local government elections.
This follows the Municipal Demarcation Board’s handover of the final ward boundaries to the commission this week. Over 4 400 municipal wards are expected to participate in the elections.
The commission’s provincial head of elections, Ntombifuthi Masinga says, “The remaining 5% of the wards shouldn’t really impact because we are going to get going immediately as the electoral commission to align our voting districts to the new ward boundaries.
“We are also quite optimistic that, given the precedents that have been set by the courts in the past on matters relating to elections. They will prioritise that matter because they understand the impact it will have should we not be able to finalise these voting districts in time for us to start our preparations for next year’s elections. So, we are quite optimistic that the matter will be resolved soon,” Masinga explains.
The Municipal Demarcation Board has officially handed over the 2026/27 Local Government Election ward boundaries to the Electoral Commission, a major milestone on South Africa’s road to the polls.
Leaders from government, civil society, traditional authorities, political… pic.twitter.com/uNkd7527Om
— IEC South Africa (@IECSouthAfrica) December 10, 2025
Masinga says only wards in four municipalities are still outstanding.
“As of yesterday, the MDB handed over 95% of the wards that have been finalised across the country. The remaining 183 wards, which make up 5% of the total figure, relate to wards in four municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal. That is Inkosi Langalibalele Municipality, Alfred Duma, eThekwini and Mkhambathini municipalities. These are the last standing pending the resolutions by the courts because we have parties that have taken the MDB to court.”
Discussion | MDB hands over final Electoral wards to IEC
💡Ever wondered how the Municipal Demarcation Board (MDB) creates ward boundaries for Local Government Elections?
Here’s a quick breakdown:
📌 Calculating the Number of Wards
The number of wards in each municipality is determined using a formula based on registered voters and… pic.twitter.com/nugMU4l9v5— IEC South Africa (@IECSouthAfrica) December 11, 2025
