George Municipality ( af, George Munisipaliteit; xh, uMasipala wase Joji) is a municipality located in the
Western Cape Province
The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
of
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. the population is 193,672.
Its municipality code is WC044.
Geography
The municipality covers an area of in the
Garden Route
The Garden Route (Afrikaans: ''Tuinroete'') is a stretch of the south-eastern coast of South Africa which extends from Witsand in the Western Cape to the border of Tsitsikamma Storms River in the Eastern Cape. The name comes from the verdant an ...
and
Little Karoo
The Karoo ( ; from the Afrikaans borrowing of the South Khoekhoe !Orakobab or Khoemana word ''ǃ’Aukarob'' "Hard veld") is a semi- desert natural region of South Africa. No exact definition of what constitutes the Karoo is available, so its ...
regions. It includes the coastal plateau around the city of
George
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...
, and extends northeast over the
Outeniqua Mountains
The Outeniqua Mountains, named after the Outeniqua Khoikhoi who lived there, is a mountain range that runs a parallel to the southern coast of South Africa, and forms a continuous range with the Langeberg to the west and the Tsitsikamma Mountains ...
to include the eastern end of the Little Karoo as far as the
Swartberg
The Swartberg mountains (''black mountain'' in Afrikaans) are a mountain range in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is composed of two main mountain chains running roughly east–west along the northern edge of the semi-arid Little Kar ...
mountains and the boundary with the
Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha.
The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...
province. It abuts on the
Mossel Bay Municipality
Mossel Bay Municipality ( af, Mosselbaai Munisipaliteit; xh, uMasipala wase Mossel Bayi) is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. the population was 89,430.
Geography
The municipality covers an area of on the coa ...
to the west, the
Oudtshoorn Municipality
Oudtshoorn Municipality ( af, Oudtshoorn Munisipaliteit) is a municipality located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. , the population was 95,933.
Geography
The municipality covers an area of in the Little Karoo, stretching from the S ...
to the northwest, the
Dr Beyers Naudé Municipality to the northeast, the
Kou-Kamma Municipality to the east, and the
Bitou and
Knysna
Knysna () is a town with 76,150 inhabitants (2019 mid-year estimates) in the Western Cape province of South Africa. and is one of the destinations on the loosely defined Garden Route tourist route. It lies at 34° 2' 6.3168'' S and 23° 2' 47. ...
Municipalities to the southeast.
According to the
2011 census the municipality has a population of 193,672 people in 53,551 households. Of this population, 50.4% describe themselves as "
Coloured
Coloureds ( af, Kleurlinge or , ) refers to members of multiracial ethnic communities in Southern Africa who may have ancestry from more than one of the various populations inhabiting the region, including African, European, and Asian. South ...
", 28.2% as "
Black African
Black is a Racialization, racialized classification of people, usually a Politics, political and Human skin color, skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have ...
", and 19.7% as "
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
". The
first language
A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...
of 67.2% of the population is
Afrikaans
Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gra ...
, while 21.7% speak
Xhosa
Xhosa may refer to:
* Xhosa people, a nation, and ethnic group, who live in south-central and southeasterly region of South Africa
* Xhosa language, one of the 11 official languages of South Africa, principally spoken by the Xhosa people
See als ...
and 8.1% speak
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
.
The majority of the residents of the municipality are in the city of George, which as of 2011 has a population of 157,394.
[Sum of the Main Place]
George
an
Thembalethu
from Census 2011. Close to George are the coastal resorts of
Herolds Bay
Herolds Bay is a settlement in Garden Route District Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Holiday resort west of Malgas River mouth, some 24km south-west of George and east of Guano Bay. Named after the first Dutch Reformed
...
(pop. 704) and
Wilderness
Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...
(pop. 6,164).
Haarlem
Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...
(pop. 2,376) and
Uniondale (pop. 4,525) are in the interior of the municipality at the top of the
Langkloof
The Langkloof is a 160 km long valley in South Africa, lying between Herold, a small village northeast of George, and The Heights - just beyond Twee Riviere.
History
The kloof was given its name by Isaq Schrijver in 1689, and more thorough ...
.
History
At the end of the
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
era, the area that is today the George Municipality was divided between two Regional Services Councils (RSCs): the coastal area around
George
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...
and
Wilderness
Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...
formed part of the South Cape RSC, while the interior area north of the Outeniqua Mountains formed part of the Klein Karoo RSC. The town of George was governed by a municipal council elected by its
white
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
residents, while
coloured
Coloureds ( af, Kleurlinge or , ) refers to members of multiracial ethnic communities in Southern Africa who may have ancestry from more than one of the various populations inhabiting the region, including African, European, and Asian. South ...
residents of George were governed by a management committee subordinate to the white council. There was a separate municipal council in neighbouring
Pacaltsdorp
Pacaltsdorp is a suburb of George, Western Cape. In the Apartheid era, it was the coloured township associated with George but administrated independently. The N2 highway provided the natural boundary between the two, enforced by a curfew.
The mis ...
where, uniquely amongst
Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope ( af, Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop), commonly referred to as the Cape Province ( af, Kaapprovinsie) and colloquially as The Cape ( af, Die Kaap), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequen ...
municipalities,
coloured
Coloureds ( af, Kleurlinge or , ) refers to members of multiracial ethnic communities in Southern Africa who may have ancestry from more than one of the various populations inhabiting the region, including African, European, and Asian. South ...
voters retained the right to vote.
Thembalethu was governed by a town council established under the
Black Local Authorities Act, 1982
The Black Local Authorities Act of 1982 provided for the establishment of a series of local government structures similar to those operating in the South African Apartheid "White areas". For the first time under Apartheid, African black residents ...
. In the Wilderness area there were three local councils for
Wilderness
Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...
proper,
Wilderness Heights, and
Hoekwil.
Herolds Bay
Herolds Bay is a settlement in Garden Route District Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Holiday resort west of Malgas River mouth, some 24km south-west of George and east of Guano Bay. Named after the first Dutch Reformed
...
was also governed by a local council. In the Langkloof, the white voters of
Uniondale elected a local council while the coloured voters elected a management committee, and the former mission settlement of
Haarlem
Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...
was governed by a board of management.
While the
negotiations to end apartheid were taking place a process was established for local authorities to agree on voluntary mergers. In September 1992 the Municipality of George and the George Management Committee merged to form a single municipal council. In July 1993 a further agreement incorporated the Herolds Bay Local Council into the Municipality of George.
After the
national elections of 1994 a process of local government transformation began, in which negotiations were held between the existing local authorities, political parties, and local community organisations. As a result of these negotiations, the existing local authorities were dissolved and transitional local councils (TLCs) were created for each town and village.
* Wilderness TLC replaced the local councils of Wilderness, Wilderness Heights and Hoekwil in January 1995.
* Uniondale TLC replaced the Uniondale Local Council and Management Committee in January 1995.
* Haarlem TLC replaced the Haarlem Management Board in January 1995.
* George TLC replaced the municipalities of George and Pacaltsdorp as well as Thembalethu Town Council in February 1995.
The transitional councils were initially made up of members nominated by the various parties to the negotiations, until May 1996 when
elections were held. At these elections the Regional Services Councils were replaced by District Councils (DCs), and transitional representative councils (TRCs) were elected to represent rural areas outside the TLCs on the DCs. The area that is today the George Municipality included part of the Outeniqua TRC under the South Cape DC, and the Uniondale TRC and most of the Bo-Langkloof TRC under the Klein Karoo DC.
At the
local elections of December 2000 the transitional councils were dissolved. The South Cape and Klein Karoo DCs were replaced by the
Eden District Municipality
The Garden Route District Municipality ( af, Tuinroete-distriksmunisipaliteit or ''Garden Route Distriksmunisipaliteit''; xh, uMasipala weSithili sase Garden Route; formerly known as the Eden District Municipality) is a district municipality loca ...
. George Municipality was established as a single local authority to govern the coastal area, while the interior area north of the Outeniqua Mountains became a
District Management Area (DMA) of the Eden District. In 2011 this area was incorporated into George Municipality when District Management Areas were abolished. Also in 2011 the Hoogekraal Plantation area north of
Sedgefield
Sedgefield is a market town and civil parish in County Durham, England. It had a population of 5,211 as at the 2011 census. It has the only operating racecourse in County Durham.
History Roman
A Roman 'ladder settlement' was discovered by C ...
was transferred from George Municipality to Knysna Municipality.
Politics
The municipal council consists of fifty-three members elected by
mixed-member proportional representation
Mixed-member proportional representation (MMP or MMPR) is a mixed electoral system in which votes cast are considered in local elections and also to determine overall party vote tallies, which are used to allocate additional members to produce ...
. Twenty-seven councillors are elected by
first-past-the-post voting
In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...
in twenty-seven
wards, while the remaining twenty-six are chosen from
party list
An electoral list is a grouping of candidates for election, usually found in proportional or mixed electoral systems, but also in some plurality electoral systems. An electoral list can be registered by a political party (a party list) or can ...
s so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. In the
election of 1 November 2021 no party obtained a majority of seats on the council. The DA did, however, win the largest amount of seats. The DA then formed a majority coalition government with the
Freedom Front Plus
The Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus; af, Vryheidsfront Plus, ''VF Plus'') is a right-wing political party in South Africa that was formed (as the Freedom Front) in 1994. It is led by Pieter Groenewald. Its current stated policy positions include ab ...
(FF Plus) and the
African Christian Democratic Party
African or Africans may refer to:
* Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa:
** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa
*** Ethn ...
(ACDP) to govern the municipality.
The following table shows the results of the 2021 election.
References
External links
* http://www.george.org.za/
{{Municipalities of the Western Cape
Local municipalities of the Garden Route District Municipality