Suzzane Zumana is the new councillor for Ward 38.
According to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), Zumana obtained 63,12% of the total votes cast during a by-election held on Wednesday 23 November to replace the late Gladstone Ntamo.
This is more than 10% lower compared to 74,46% achieved by the African National Congress (ANC) during the 2021 Municipal Elections.
The GOOD party made some inroads in the area and achieved 16% of the votes while the Democratic Alliance obtained 13%.
In a statement, the IEC stated that the voter turnout (the number of people who took part in the election compared to registered voters in the ward) stood at 26, 27%.
GOOD secretary Brent Herron said they are pleased with the results despite falling short.
“GOOD moved up to the second biggest party in Nyanga/New Crossroads/KTC, with our percentage of the vote jumping from 5,02% in the 2021 Local Government Elections, to 17,11% in this by-election. The significant result in this important election shows that more voters are turning to GOOD to make a real difference in their community,” he said.
ANC regional coordinator Mavusi Mdala said they are pleased with the results even though they are concerned about the decline in numbers.
He stated that there is a long way to go and a lot needs to be done to win the trust of the community. “We are happy with the results because it shows that the community still believes in the organisation. It means we need to pull up our socks and ensure that the community gets the services that they deserve”.
However, he confessed that they are shocked by the growth of Democratic Alliance (DA) supporters in the Hlazo Village voting district (VD).
Mdala brushed aside the decline in numbers voted for the ANC citing that there’s nothing much can be learned from the by-elections as the mood is not the same. “We won all seven VD’s in the ward. But the DA had a significant increase in support in Hlazo Village VD which we did not take lightly.”
