Parties battle for Ward 24
THE HIGHLY contested Ward 24 municipal by-election took place in Kimberley yesterday.
The Sol Plaatje Municipality’s Ward 24 (Lindene, Rhodesdene, Carters Glen and Hadison Park) by-election was contested by Melga Sharon Tobias of the ANC, Sharon Merle Steyn of the DA, Lettie Papier of the EFF and Hendrik Jacobus van den Berg of the FF+.
The ward was previously represented by the DA and became vacant as a result of the death of the councillor, Dirk van der Merwe.
According to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) the voter turnout for this ward during the 2016 municipal elections was 70.14 percent and the DA candidate won with ward with 82.84 percent of the valid votes.
Confident
Party candidates yesterday all remained confident of a “good support outcome” for their respective parties.
Van den Berg said that the FF+ hoped to double its votes from last year, while Papier said that she was confident in the vote of the people who “wanted change”.
Steyn, however, remained confident that the DA would again receive the majority of votes, but did raise concern that a few DA votes could go to the FF+, following the recent bad press surrounding Helen Zille.
Tobias was also optimistic about the ANC’s chances in the by-election.
It was largely a slow day with an average of about 40 people per hour casting their votes. Party representatives, however, stated that most voters were expected to vote after 5pm. Voting stations remained open until 9pm last night. ELECTION: Voters in Ward 24 in Kimberley went to the polls yesterday.