South Africa’s ruling African National Congress has maintained its grip on Durban following the re-election of Mxolisi Kaunda as mayor of the Indian Ocean port city, APA learnt on Thursday.
In a crucial victory for the party, Kaunda beat the main opposition Democratic Alliance candidate Nicole Graham — receiving 113 votes to the latter’s 104 ballots – with two ballot papers being declared as invalid votes.
The win was a departure from the ANC’s complete defeat in Gauteng Province’s metros, where the party failed to take the capital Pretoria, Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni which went in favour of DA candidates, results showed.
Meanwhile, Graham has blamed some smaller parties for handing power back to the ANC in Durban.
Earlier, a former president Jacob Zuma backer and founder and leader of the Abantu Batho Congress (ABC) party, Philani “PG” Mavundla, became a member of the Durban municipality’s executive committee.
Mavundla will take up the seat of the second most powerful decision-making body in council after being nominated to the committee by the ANC – in exchange for his providing votes to Kaunda to propel him to victory.
NM/as/APA