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Find your ward IEC councillor lookupYour deal · estimate0 / 270 seats
136 to go136 for a majority
Some assembly required.Order. Who’s still speaking to whom?
Who’s in?
Historical context
Hypothetical deal · Estimated seats · Fictional scenario
Satire with sourced historical context. No affiliation or endorsement implied. Game context · Terms & liability limits · Report a concern
Beyond the game
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Official government directory. Ask for the Speaker’s office or public participation unit. Government directory ↗ · Link listed on 7 November 2026.
Municipal resource pages reviewed 7 November 2026. These links do not mean a consultation is currently open.
Madam Speaker
takes the floor.
“I’m Madam Speaker. Secretary bird. Keeper of the gavel. Please don’t make me use it.
Welcome to the bargaining table in Johannesburg. One mayoral chain, several competing plans. You bring the partners. I’ll put the kettle on.”
The honourable cast
- Helen ZilleDA
- Cyril RamaphosaANC
- Herman MashabaActionSA
- Julius MalemaEFF
- Jacob ZumaMK
- Velenkosini HlabisaIFP
- Gayton McKenziePA
- RISE MZANSI
- Corné MulderFF+
- ATM
- Al Jama-ah
- ACDP
- AMM
- SACP
- AHC
- AIC
- APC
- BOSA
- ELFSA
- PAC
- PSMFC
- UAT
Fictional scenario. Party cameos, not a full list of local candidates.
Rules, real politics & sources
99.2% reporting
Seat calculation & source
Based on combined ward and PR votes counted so far. Only reported ward wins and independent seats are fixed. Unfinished wards and candidate-list limits can change the allocation. This is a calculation using the current count, not a forecast of the final result.
We reserve the IEC’s reported independent ward seats, then divide the combined party votes by the remaining council seats, discard the fraction and add one. Whole quotas receive seats first, followed by the largest remainders. A tied remainder favours the party with more votes; an unresolved tie leaves the estimate unavailable.
A party keeps its reported ward seats. Where those exceed its proportional allocation, we recalculate the remaining seats for the other parties. We assume parties can fill their estimated seats. We do not predict unfinished ward contests, additional independent wins, unopposed-ward adjustments or candidate-list shortages. The remaining districts may vote differently.
Ward seats reported: 129 of 135. The IEC’s complete allocation replaces this estimate when its totals reconcile.
Method: Municipal Structures Act, Schedule 1, items 12, 13 and 16 ↗.
IEC result time: 07 Nov 2026, 17:06 SAST · Source figures ↗
Tap parties to reach 136 seats, then roll the dice for one fictional scenario. Every roll starts from your original deal. Previously drawn scenarios stay out of the deck until the applicable cards run out. Every party follows the same rules. A “key partner” is one whose departure would put your deal below the majority target. Plot twists do not change the real results or your selection.
A seat majority does not confirm a governing agreement. The game uses a fixed majority of all council seats; real council votes can involve different attendance and voting rules. The caricatures represent national party leaders, not local candidates.
Inspired by the kingmaker politics and shifting alliances documented in MISTRA’s Coalitions Barometer. In May 2023, Johannesburg elected Al Jama-ah’s Kabelo Gwamanda mayor with 139 votes: a small party can win a very big chair. City record ↗
Council government
Who has governed here
ACDP + ActionSA + COPE + DA + FF+ + IFP14 Feb 2022
ACDP + ActionSA + COPE + DA + FF+ + IFP + PA30 Sept 2022
Al Jama-ah + ANC + COPE + EFF + GOOD + PA25 Oct 2022
ACDP + ActionSA + DA + FF+ + IFP26 Jan 2023
AIC + Al Jama-ah + ANC + ATM + COPE + EFF + GOOD + PA + PAC + UDM13 Aug 2024
ActionSA + AIC + Al Jama-ah + ANC + EFF + IFP + PAFeb 2026
Administrations & sources
MISTRA records the administrations that governed after the 2021 election, through 28 February 2026. The latest recorded administration is shown below, followed by its predecessors. Party roles and officeholders are recorded at formation; later changes may appear in the notes.
ActionSAAICAl Jama-ahANCEFFIFPPA
Members at formation · majority coalition · 16 Aug 2024 · recorded active at source cutoff
Inaugural mayor: D. Morero (ANC)
Source notes: Speaker N. Mthembu was removed by a council vote in June 2025 and M. Arnolds of the AIC was elected in her place the following month. The council created the city's first deputy mayor post in January 2026. Masuku was elected to it on 26 February 2026.
The recorded partners in 2026
136 / 270 estimated seats
Enough seats for a hypothetical majority · 136 needed
Hypothetical total for the recorded members at formation. Excludes outside supporters. It does not establish a current agreement, government retention, or a takeover.
6 recorded administrations · 2021–February 2026
- ActionSA + AIC + Al Jama-ah + ANC + EFF + IFP + PA
16 Aug 2024 → Active at cutoff · 28 Feb 2026
Members at formation. Inaugural mayor: D. Morero.
Speaker N. Mthembu was removed by a council vote in June 2025 and M. Arnolds of the AIC was elected in her place the following month. The council created the city's first deputy mayor post in January 2026. Masuku was elected to it on 26 February 2026.
- AIC + Al Jama-ah + ANC + ATM + COPE + EFF + GOOD + PA + PAC + UDM
27 Jan 2023 → 13 Aug 2024 · Recomposition
Members at formation. Inaugural mayor: T. Amad.
Mayor T. Amad resigned in April 2023 and K. Gwamanda of Al Jama-ah was elected eleven days later. A June 2023 by-election moved a seat from the ANC to the PA.
Release note: AHC is coded as opposition but a cited source lists it as a member.
- ACDP + ActionSA + DA + FF+ + IFP
25 Oct 2022 → 26 Jan 2023 · MONC
Members at formation. Inaugural mayor: M. Phalatse.
- Al Jama-ah + ANC + COPE + EFF + GOOD + PA
30 Sept 2022 → 25 Oct 2022 · Court Order
Members at formation. Inaugural mayor: D. Morero.
This administration lasted under a month, too short for several parties to be observed in a role. The AIC, ATM, PAC and UDM are all coded as Unknown.
- ACDP + ActionSA + COPE + DA + FF+ + IFP + PA
15 Feb 2022 → 30 Sept 2022 · MONC
Members at formation. Outside support: EFF. Inaugural mayor: M. Phalatse.
- ACDP + ActionSA + COPE + DA + FF+ + IFP
22 Nov 2021 → 14 Feb 2022 · Recomposition
Members at formation. Outside support: EFF + PA. Inaugural mayor: M. Phalatse.
In the news
Coalition news · Johannesburg
Since 4 November 2026 · From Google News
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