Theewaterskloof Local Municipality

Theewaterskloof Municipality is a local municipality located within the Overberg District Municipality, in the Western Cape province of South Africa. As of 2007, the population was 108,790.[2] Its municipality code is WC031. The enormous Theewaterskloof Dam, which provides water for Cape Town and the surrounding areas, is located in this municipality.

Theewaterskloof
Local municipality
Seal
Location in the Western Cape
Coordinates: 34°10′S 19°30′E
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceWestern Cape
DistrictOverberg
SeatCaledon
Wards13
Government
 • TypeMunicipal council
 • MayorChristelle Vosloo
Area
 • Total3,232 km2 (1,248 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[2]
 • Total108,790
 • Density34/km2 (87/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
 • Black African26.4%
 • Coloured62.9%
 • Indian/Asian0.4%
 • White9.4%
First languages (2011)
 • Afrikaans73.6%
 • Xhosa16.9%
 • English3.9%
 • Sotho3.6%
 • Other2%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Municipal codeWC031

Geography

The municipality covers an area of 3,232 square kilometres (1,248 sq mi) in the western interior of the Overberg region. It occupies the area between the Riviersonderend Mountains to the north and the Kogelberg and Kleinrivier Mountains to the south; to the west it stretches as far as the Hottentots-Holland mountains.

The western area of the municipality is the Elgin Valley, drained by the Palmiet River. The northern part is the valley of the Sonderend River including the Theewaterskloof Dam. The southeastern part is in the Overberg plain, drained by the Bot and Klein Rivers.[4]

According to the 2011 census the municipality has a population of 108,790 people in 28,884 households. Of this population, 62.9% describe themselves as "Coloured", 26.4% as "Black African", and 9.4% as "White". The first language of 73.6% of the population is Afrikaans, while 16.9% speak Xhosa, 3.9% speak English and 3.6% speak Sotho.[5]

The largest town in the municipality is Grabouw in the Elgin Valley, which as of 2011 has a population of 30,337. However, the municipal headquarters are situated in Caledon (pop. 13,020) on the plain. Between Grabouw and Caledon is Botrivier (pop. 5,505) at the base of the Houwhoek Pass. Villiersdorp (pop. 10,004) is located in the northern part of the municipality close to the Theewaterskloof Dam. Downstream from the dam along the Sonderend River are the villages of Genadendal (pop. 5,663), Greyton (pop. 2,780) and Riviersonderend (pop. 5,245). The smallest town in the district is Tesselaarsdal, which is approximately 20km south-east of Caledon.[6]

Politics

The municipal council consists of twenty-seven members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Fourteen councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in fourteen wards, while the remaining thirteen 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 3 August 2016 the Democratic Alliance (DA) obtained a majority of fourteen seats on the council.

The following table shows the results of the 2016 election.[7][8][9]

PartyVotesSeats
WardListTotal%WardListTotal
Democratic Alliance 16,10316,88232,98551.0%9514
ANC 11,65011,87323,52336.3%5510
United Front of the Eastern Cape 1,1131,1542,2673.5%011
Economic Freedom Fighters 7998201,6192.5%011
Independent 1,451–1,4512.2%0–0
Independent Civic Organisation 4424809221.4%011
UDM 4334178501.3%000
Freedom Front Plus 2292604890.8%000
ACDP 1632814440.7%000
People's Democratic Movement 3162930.1%000
The Peoples Independent Civic Organisation 2353760.1%000
Total 32,43732,28264,719141327
Valid votes 32,43732,28264,71997.1%
Spoilt votes 9479711,9182.9%
Total votes cast 33,38433,25366,637
Voter turnout 33,435
Registered voters 56,687
Turnout percentage 59.0%

The local council sends five representatives to the council of the Overberg District Municipality: three from the Democratic Alliance and two from the African National Congress.[10]

References
  1. "Contact list: Executive Mayors". Government Communication & Information System. Archived from the original on 14 July 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
  2. "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  3. "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  4. C. Schoeman: The Historical Overberg. Traces of the Past in South Africa's Southernmost Region. Penguin Random House South Africa. 2017. ISBN 978-1-77609-072-3
  5. "Theewaterskloof Local Municipality". Census 2011.
  6. "Our towns". TWK Municipality. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  7. "Results Summary – All Ballots: Theewaterskloof" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  8. "Seat Calculation Detail: Theewaterskloof" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  9. "Voter Turnout Report: Theewaterskloof" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  10. "Political composition of councils February 2017" (PDF). Western Cape Department of Local Government. February 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
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