The Nquthu Local Municipality council consists of thirty-seven members elected by mixed-member proportional representation.
Nineteen councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in nineteen wards, while the remaining eighteen are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received.
[4] By February 2017, the Nquthu Local Municipality had failed to form a council and appoint a mayor.
[5] A coalition of Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), Democratic Alliance (DA) and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) held the majority control by one seat over the ANC's coalition of seventeen seats.
[5] In the special election held on 25 May 2017, the IFP won a majority of 58% of the vote and 19 seats on the council.