Ward and PR councillors: what yours can and can't do
Every Vaal resident has a ward councillor, and party-list councillors sit on the same council. Here is how each kind gets there, what the law expects of them, and what ward committees are for.
By Staff Reporter · Published
As at 5 November 2026.
- Ward councillors are elected by voters in one ward. The candidate with the most votes wins.1
- PR councillors are elected from party lists, so that each party’s share of seats reflects its share of the vote.1
- Both must report back. By law, all councillors must report back to their constituencies at least every quarter.2
- Neither may give orders to staff. Councillors may not interfere in the municipality’s administration or instruct staff unless they are authorised to.2
Two routes to the same council
In a local council such as Emfuleni or Midvaal, half the seats are ward seats.1 Candidates for these seats can be party candidates or independents. Nationally, 621 independent ward candidates are standing in these elections.3
The rest are proportional representation (PR) seats, filled from the lists that parties submit. Parties must try to ensure that half the candidates on their lists are women, spread evenly through each list.1 For how the seats are counted, read How your vote becomes seats.
Once elected, ward and PR councillors sit and vote on the same council.
When a councillor leaves
- Ward councillor: a by-election must be held within 90 days of the vacancy.1 Emfuleni held one in ward 28 on 27 May 2026, where turnout was 35.79%.4
- PR councillor: no election is needed. The IEC’s chief electoral officer declares the next person on the party’s list elected.1
What the law expects of councillors
The Code of Conduct for Councillors in Schedule 7 of the Structures Act, strengthened in 2021, says councillors must:2
- perform their functions in good faith, honestly and transparently;
- be accountable to local communities;
- report back at least quarterly on council matters, including how the municipality is performing against its indicators.
It also sets out what councillors may not do:2
- interfere in the management or administration of a council department, unless the council mandates it;
- give instructions to municipal employees unless authorised to;
- use or benefit from municipal property they have no right to;
- fall more than three months behind on their own rates and service charges.
When the Code is breached: if the speaker reasonably suspects a breach, the speaker must authorise an investigation and give the councillor a chance to reply in writing. The speaker then reports the matter to a council meeting, and that report is open to the public. The outcome also goes to the provincial MEC for local government.2
What a councillor can and can’t do for you
| Can | Can’t |
|---|---|
| Take your complaint about a service to the council and follow it up | Instruct an official to fix your meter or move you up a list2 |
| Raise your ward’s needs when the budget and the integrated development plan are drawn up | Approve contracts, appoint staff or spend money personally |
| Hold public report-back meetings | Run housing, clinics, schools or police stations, which are provincial or national functions5 |
Ward committees
The Structures Act, as amended in 2021, says a metro or local council must set up a ward committee for each ward within 120 days of the election. (The Act still limits ward committees to municipalities whose type includes a ward participatory system.) If the council cannot meet that deadline, the speaker must ask the MEC for an extension before it expires.2
- Who sits on it: the ward councillor, who chairs the committee, plus up to 10 other people. The council’s rules for electing members must take into account fair representation of women and the range of interests in the ward.1
- What it does: it can make recommendations on any matter affecting the ward, either to the ward councillor or, through the councillor, to the council or the mayor. It can also do anything else the council delegates to it.1
What to do next
- Find your councillor. Enter your ID number on the IEC’s Who is my ward councillor page, or SMS your ID number to 32245 (R1 per SMS).6 It shows your current councillor until the new council takes office.
- Ask about the ward committee. Once your new councillor is in office, ask when the ward committee will be elected and how you can stand or vote.
- Go to report-back meetings. Ask for one if none has been held in three months.2
- Series guide: How local government works: a Vaal guide for the 2026 elections and after
- Metros, districts and local municipalities explained
- Who does what: water, power, roads, refuse, housing and policing
- Ward, PR and district ballots: how your vote becomes seats
- Ward and PR councillors: what yours can and can’t do (you are here)
- Mayor, speaker, whip and municipal manager explained
- Hung councils and coalitions explained (coming soon)
- Emfuleni’s money: budgets, audits and section 139
- How to hold your council to account
- Local Government: Municipal Structures Act 117 of 1998 (consolidated to 1 November 2022), sections 22, 25, 73 and 74, and Schedule 1, items 8, 11 and 18, LawLibrary
- Local Government: Municipal Structures Amendment Act 3 of 2021, section 28 (amending section 73) and Schedule 7, Code of Conduct for Councillors, items 12–15, Government Gazette 44647, gov.za (1 June 2021)
- Electoral Commission certifies 136 790 candidates to contest the 2026 Local Government Elections, Electoral Commission via gov.za (September 2026)
- Results of municipal by-elections held on 27 May 2026, Electoral Commission (May 2026)
- Constitution, Schedule 4: Functional Areas of Concurrent National and Provincial Legislative Competence, gov.za
- Who is my ward councillor?, Electoral Commission
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