The governing African National Congress (ANC) has snatched two wards from the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) in Umhlabuyalingana and Endumeni municipalities in by-elections this week.

Political parties contested in eight by-elections in KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and Limpopo on Wednesday, with six of the by-elections held in KwaZulu-Natal. At the eThekhwini metro, the governing party retained two wards. It also retained ward 22 at the Newcastle municipality while the IFP managed to retain ward 3 at Nongoma municipality. The ANC took over at Umhlabuyalingana and Endumeni after receiving 56.29 and 57.13 percent of votes cast respectively.

In the Eastern Cape's Nelson Mandela Bay, the Democratic Alliance (DA), ANC, African Christian Democratic Party, Congress of the People and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) went head to head for DA's ward 2. The party retained the ward with 93.36 percent of the votes. 

At Limpopo's Fetakgomo Tubatse municipality, ward 5 was up for grabs following the death of the ANC councillor. The ANC retained the ward after receiving 61.8 percent of votes, beating the EFF, Azanian People's Organisation, the Pan Africanist Congress, the Socialist Agenda Of Dispossessed Africans and the South African Maintenance And Estate Beneficiaries Association.