Politics
The municipal council consists of nineteen members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Ten councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in ten wards, while the remaining nine 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 18 May 2011 the Democratic Alliance won a majority of ten seats on the council.
The following table shows the results of the 2011 election.
| Party | Votes | Vote % | Seats | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ward | List | Total | ||||
| Democratic Alliance | 23,580 | 50.5 | 5 | 5 | 10 | |
| African National Congress | 17,875 | 38.3 | 4 | 3 | 7 | |
| Congress of the People | 3,197 | 6.9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Independent | 1,132 | 2.4 | 1 | — | 1 | |
| African Christian Democratic Party | 713 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Cape Party | 165 | 0.4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 46,662 | 100.0 | 10 | 9 | 19 | |
| Spoilt votes | 987 | |||||
The local council sends two representatives to the council of the Eden District Municipality: one from the Democratic Alliance and one from the African National Congress.
Read more about this topic: Knysna Local Municipality
Famous quotes containing the word politics:
“The word “revolution” itself has become not only a dead relic of Leftism, but a key to the deadendedness of male politics: the “revolution” of a wheel which returns in the end to the same place; the “revolving door” of a politics which has “liberated” women only to use them, and only within the limits of male tolerance.”
—Adrienne Rich (b. 1929)
“The average educated man in America has about as much knowledge of what a political idea is as he has of the principles of counterpoint. Each is a thing used in politics or music which those fellows who practise politics or music manipulate somehow. Show him one and he will deny that it is politics at all. It must be corrupt or he will not recognize it. He has only seen dried figs. He has only thought dried thoughts. A live thought or a real idea is against the rules of his mind.”
—John Jay Chapman (1862–1933)
“In politics if you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman.”
—Margaret Thatcher (b. 1925)