ANT KATZ

Councils have to, in terms of electoral law, sit within 14 days of the election results being issued. The city manager takes up the mayoral seat at the beginning of the meeting until a mayor is selected by a simple majority.

As the EFF plans to vote for the DA mayoral candidate, the likelihood is that the day-to-day running of the city will be carried out by a DA-led Mayoral Committee.

Three previous Jewish councillors – Steven Kruger, John Mendelson and Tyrel Meyer – have been returned while two new ones – Madeleine Hicklin and Josh Apfel – have become first-time councillors. All five represent the Democratic Alliance.

RIGHT: Popular Ward 72 City Councillor Steven Kruger was re-elected with a massive 83 percent majority

One of the country’s longest-serving local politicians, Sol Cowan of the ANC, lost his seat to the DA. The disappointingly low poll saw the DA getting fewer votes than it did in 2011, but a higher percentage of the seats on Council, through the proportional representative formula.

In the event of no agreements being reached in hung municipalities and metros, the new councils will still sit on Friday, chaired by the town or city managers.

Johannesburg is home to most of SA’s Jews, who largely live within 10 of the city’s wards. Previously, eight were held by the DA, now all 10 are.

Steven Kruger, the DA councillor for Ward 72, which stretches from Orange Grove to Glenhazel, has been elected with a massive 83 per cent of the ward’s votes, although he was disappointed at the 64 per cent turnout.

Related reads this week:

• WATERSHED VOTE RAISES QUESTIONS by DANIEL SILKE
• RESOLVING HUNG COUNCILS by ANT KATZ and PROF PIERRE DE VOS 

The results that affect Johannesburg Jewry

The ANC received 1 121 948 votes, 44 per cent of those cast, and 121 of the 270 seats on the Council. The DA got 966 192 votes (38 per cent) and 104 seats while the EFF got 279 195 votes (11 per cent) and 30 seats. The remaining 15 seats went to five smaller parties.

The smaller players, in order of the number of votes they got, are the Inkatha Freedom Party, 5 seats; the African Independent Congress, 4; and one each for the Vryheidsfront-Plus, the African Christian Democratic Party, Al Jama-ah, the United Democratic Movement, the Congress of the People, and the Patriotic Alliance.

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Your City Councillors

The 10 wards that largely cover the Jewish community have voted the following DA candidates in – format is Ward#, Area, Ward Councillor: 73 (Norwood, Killarney), Mia Snyman; 74 (Gresswold), Dave Fisher; 81 (Kew), Irene Rugheimer; 87 (Greenside, Victory Park). Bridget Steer; 88 (Emmarentia, Northcliff), Nicholas Lorimer; 91 (Athol, Inanda), Jeffret Pietersen; 109 (Wendywood, Gallo Manor), Werner Smit; 117 (Saxonwold), Tim Truluck; and 103 (Sandown, Morningside), Vincent Earp.

• Wards 81 and 109 were not previously held by the DA.