KwaZulu-Natal Legislature | |
---|---|
7th Legislature | |
![]() | |
Type | |
Type | |
Leadership | |
Speaker | |
Deputy Speaker | |
Premier | |
Structure | |
Seats | 80 |
![]() | |
Political groups | Government (41) Official Opposition (37)
Other parties (2)
|
Elections | |
Party-list proportional representation | |
Last election | 29 May 2024 |
Meeting place | |
![]() | |
239 Langalibalele Street, Pietermaritzburg | |
Website | |
kznlegislature |
The KwaZulu-Natal Legislature is the primary legislative body of the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal. It is unicameral in its composition and elects the premier and the provincial cabinet from among the leading party or coalition members in the parliament. Thami Ntuli of the Inkatha Freedom Party was elected Premier of KwaZulu-Natal at the first sitting of the provincial legislature on 14 June 2024. [2]
The KwaZulu-Natal Legislature chooses the Premier of KwaZulu-Natal, the head of the KwaZulu-Natal provincial executive. The legislature can impel the Premier to resign by passing a motion of no confidence. Although the Premier appoints the members of the Executive Council, the legislature may pass a motion of no confidence to force the Premier to reshuffle the Council. The legislature also designates the KwaZulu-Natal's delegates to the National Council of Provinces, allocating delegates to parties in proportion to the number of seats each party holds in the legislature.
The legislature has the power to pass legislation in numerous fields set out in the national constitution; in some fields, the legislative power is shared with the national parliament, while in others it is reserved to the province alone. The fields include matters as health, education (except universities), agriculture, housing, environmental protection, and development planning.
The legislature oversees the administration of the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government, and the Premier of KwaZulu-Natal and the Executive Council members are required to report to the legislature on the performance of their responsibilities. The legislature also manages the financial affairs of the provincial government by way of the appropriation bills which determine the provincial budget.
The provincial legislature consists of 80 members, who are elected through a system of party list proportional representation with closed lists. In other words, each voter casts a vote for one political party, and seats in the legislature are allocated to the parties in proportion to the number of votes received. The seats are then filled by members in accordance with lists submitted by the parties before the election.
The legislature is elected for a term of five years, unless it is dissolved early. This may occur if the legislature votes to dissolve and it is at least three years since the last election, or if the Premiership falls vacant and the legislature fails to elect a new Premier within ninety days. By convention, all nine provincial legislatures and the National Assembly are elected on the same day.
The most recent election was held on 29 May 2024. The following table summarises the results.
![]() | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Votes | % | +/– | Seats | +/– | |
uMkhonto we Sizwe | 1,590,813 | 45.35 | New | 37 | New | |
Inkatha Freedom Party | 633,771 | 18.07 | ![]() | 15 | ![]() | |
African National Congress | 595,958 | 16.99 | ![]() | 14 | ![]() | |
Democratic Alliance | 468,515 | 13.36 | ![]() | 11 | ![]() | |
Economic Freedom Fighters | 79,211 | 2.26 | ![]() | 2 | ![]() | |
National Freedom Party | 19,548 | 0.56 | ![]() | 1 | ![]() | |
Moodley Thanasagren Rubbanathan | 12,323 | 0.35 | New | 0 | New | |
African Christian Democratic Party | 11,366 | 0.32 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
ActionSA | 9,569 | 0.27 | New | 0 | New | |
Allied Movement for Change | 8,007 | 0.23 | New | 0 | New | |
Patriotic Alliance | 7,843 | 0.22 | New | 0 | New | |
African Transformation Movement | 6,477 | 0.18 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
Democratic Liberal Congress | 6,126 | 0.17 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
Al Jama-ah | 6,012 | 0.17 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
Freedom Front Plus | 5,638 | 0.16 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
Build One South Africa | 4,648 | 0.13 | New | 0 | New | |
African People's Movement | 4,117 | 0.12 | New | 0 | New | |
Rise Mzansi | 3,898 | 0.11 | New | 0 | New | |
Pan Africanist Congress of Azania | 3,817 | 0.11 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
Justice and Employment Party | 3,626 | 0.10 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
Congress of the People | 3,615 | 0.10 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
Abantu Batho Congress | 3,214 | 0.09 | New | 0 | New | |
People's Freedom Party | 3,162 | 0.09 | New | 0 | New | |
Sizwe Ummah Nation | 2,731 | 0.08 | New | 0 | New | |
United Democratic Movement | 2,565 | 0.07 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
African Independent Congress | 2,527 | 0.07 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
African Movement Congress | 2,049 | 0.06 | New | 0 | New | |
Good | 2,005 | 0.06 | ![]() | 0 | ![]() | |
Arise SA | 1,958 | 0.06 | New | 0 | New | |
African People First | 1,007 | 0.03 | New | 0 | New | |
Economic Liberators Forum South Africa | 679 | 0.02 | New | 0 | New | |
All Citizens Party | 631 | 0.02 | New | 0 | New | |
Africa Restoration Alliance | 629 | 0.02 | New | 0 | New | |
Total | 3,508,055 | 100.00 | – | 80 | – | |
Valid votes | 3,508,055 | 98.88 | ||||
Invalid/blank votes | 39,761 | 1.12 | ||||
Total votes | 3,547,816 | 100.00 | ||||
Registered voters/turnout | 5,738,249 | 61.83 | ||||
Source: Electoral Commission of South Africa |
The following table shows the composition of the legislature after past elections and floor-crossing periods.
Event | ACDP | ANC | DP/DA | EFF | IFP | MF | MK | NFP | NP/NNP | PAC | UDM | Others |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1994 election | 1 | 26 | 2 | — | 41 | 1 | — | — | 9 | 1 | — | 0 |
1999 election | 1 | 32 | 7 | — | 34 | 2 | — | — | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
2003 floor-crossing | 1 | 35 | 6 | — | 32 | 2 | — | — | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
2004 election | 2 | 38 | 7 | — | 30 | 2 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
2005 floor-crossing | 1 | 40 | 5 | — | 27 | 2 | — | — | — | 0 | 1 | 4 |
2007 floor-crossing | 1 | 41 | 5 | — | 27 | 2 | — | — | — | 0 | 1 | 3 |
2009 election | 1 | 51 | 7 | — | 18 | 2 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | 1 |
2014 election | 0 | 52 | 10 | 2 | 9 | 1 | — | 6 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2019 election | 1 | 44 | 11 | 8 | 13 | 1 | — | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 1 |
2024 election | 0 | 14 | 11 | 2 | 15 | — | 37 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The Speaker of the Legislature is Ntobeko Boyce, while the Deputy Speaker is Mmabatho Tembe. [3] The following people have served as Speaker:
Name | Entered Office | Left Office | Party |
---|---|---|---|
Bonga Mdletshe [4] [5] | 1998 | 2004 | IFP |
Willies Mchunu | 2004 | 2009 | ANC |
Peggy Nkonyeni [6] | 2009 | 2013 | ANC |
Lydia Johnson [7] [8] | 2013 | 2019 | ANC |
Ntobeko Boyce | 2019 | Incumbent | ANC |
The Inkatha Freedom Party is a conservative political party in South Africa. Although registered as a national party, it has had only minor electoral success outside its home province of KwaZulu-Natal. Mangosuthu Buthelezi, who served as chief minister of KwaZulu during the Apartheid period, founded the party in 1975 and led it until 2019. He was succeeded as party president in 2019 by Velenkosini Hlabisa.
Bongiwe Nomusa Sithole-Moloi (née Sithole) has served as KwaZulu-Natal's Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs since February 2023. She has represented the African National Congress (ANC) in the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature since 2014.
The Premier of KwaZulu-Natal is the head of government of the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. The current Premier of KwaZulu-Natal is Thami Ntuli, a member of the Inkatha Freedom Party. He took office on 18 June 2024.
Nontembeko Nothemba "Ntobeko" Boyce is a South African politician who has been serving as the Speaker of the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature since 22 May 2019. A member of the African National Congress (ANC), she joined the legislature in May 2014. She served as the deputy chief whip before her appointment as chief whip in 2016. She also formerly served as the chairperson of the legislature's Standing Committee on Oversight. Boyce was re-elected as Speaker of the KwaZulu-Natal legislature on 14 June 2024, with support from the Inkatha Freedom Party, Democratic Alliance and National Freedom Party. Boyce received 41 votes and defeated Mervyn Dirks of the UMkhonto WeSizwe party who received 39 votes with the support of the Economic Freedom Fighters.
Nomusa Dube-Ncube is a South African politician and former diplomat who was the 9th Premier of KwaZulu-Natal from August 2022 to June 2024. A member of the African National Congress, she is the first woman to hold the office. She was succeeded by Thami Ntuli.
Christopher "Chris" John Pappas is a South African politician who is the mayor of the uMngeni Local Municipality. A member of the Democratic Alliance, he served as party's deputy provincial leader from 2021 until 2023. Pappas served as a member of the eThekwini city council from 2016 until 2019 and as a DA Member of the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature from 2019 to 2021.
Neliswa Peggy Nkonyeni is a South African politician and educator. A member of the African National Congress, she has been the Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Finance in KwaZulu-Natal since 2022.
Zwelifile Christopher Ntuli was a South African politician and member of the African National Congress who served as a member of the National Assembly of South Africa from 2009 until his election to the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature in 2014. Ntuli left the legislature at the 2019 election.
Ntuthuko Mbongiseni Sibiya, known as Jomo Sibiya, is a South African politician who served as the Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Human Settlements and Public Works in KwaZulu-Natal from March 2021 until August 2022. A member of the African National Congress, Sibiya was elected to the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature in 2014.
Mdumiseni Ntuli is a South African politician. He has represented the African National Congress (ANC) in the National Assembly since June 2024, and he formerly served in the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature from May 2016 to July 2018. He left the latter position to serve as Provincial Secretary of the ANC's KwaZulu-Natal branch, an office he held between 2018 and 2022.
The Executive Council of KwaZulu-Natal is the cabinet of the executive branch of the provincial government in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal. The Members of the Executive Council (MECs) are appointed from among the members of the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature by the Premier of KwaZulu-Natal, an office held since May 2024 by Thami Ntuli of the African National Congress (ANC).
Bangokwakhe Madesius "Super" Zuma is a South African politician and former trade unionist who has served as KwaZulu-Natal's Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Agriculture and Rural Development since February 2023. He has represented the African National Congress (ANC) in the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature since September 2018, having formerly served in his seat from 2014 to 2015.
Belinda Francis Scott, formerly Belinda Barrett, is a South African politician who was KwaZulu-Natal's Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Finance from 2014 to 2019. She served several terms in the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature from 1994 to 2019, representing the African National Congress (ANC) from 2002 onwards after defecting from both the Democratic Party and the Inkatha Freedom Party. After she left the provincial legislature in 2019, she served as Deputy Mayor of eThekwini from September 2019 until she resigned from politics in February 2021.
Bonga Nkanyiso Mdletshe was a South African politician and traditional leader who represented the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) in the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature from 1996 to 2014. During this period, he served as Speaker in the legislature from 1998 to 2004. A lawyer by training, he entered politics during apartheid as a member of the government of the former bantustan of KwaZulu.
Lydia Johnson is a South African politician who represented the African National Congress (ANC) in the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature until 2019. She was the legislature's Speaker from 2013 to 2019 and previously served in the KwaZulu-Natal Executive Council between 2006 and 2011: she was KwaZulu-Natal's Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Public Works from 2006 to 2009 and MEC for Agriculture, Environmental Affairs and Rural Development from 2009 to 2011. In June 2022, she was appointed board chairperson at Ezemvelo.
Mmabatho Tembe is a South African politician who has served as the Deputy Speaker of the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature since June 2024. A member of the Democratic Alliance, she has served in the provincial legislature since December 2021. Tembe had previously served as a councillor in the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality.
The 2024 KwaZulu-Natal provincial election was held on 29 May 2024, concurrently with the 2024 South African general election, to elect the 80 members of the 7th KwaZulu-Natal Legislature. The new MK party flipped KwaZulu Natal from the ANC, earning 37 out of 80 seats to gain a plurality. Conversely, the ANC itself plummeted to the third place, losing its majority in the legislature for the first time since 2004.
Arthur Thamsanqa Ntuli is a is a South African politician who is the Provincial Chairperson of the Inkatha Freedom Party in KwaZulu-Natal. He is the former mayor of Nkandla Local Municipality and King Cetshwayo District Municipality, currently serves as the Premier of KwaZulu-Natal.