The Matatiele Local Municipality council consists of fifty-four members elected by mixed-member proportional representation.
In the election of 1 November 2021 the African National Congress (ANC) won a majority of forty seats.
In 2006 and 2011, the largest opposition party was the locally founded African Independent Congress, protesting against the inclusion of Matatiele in the Eastern Cape rather than KwaZulu-Natal.
[1] The following table shows the composition of the council after past elections.
[5] The following by-elections were held to fill vacant ward seats in the period from the election in November 2021.