Limpopo Provincial Legislature


The Limpopo Provincial Legislature, previously known as the Northern Transvaal Provincial Legislature and Northern Province Provincial Legislature, is the primary legislative body of the South African province of Limpopo.
It is unicameral in its composition, and elects the premier and the provincial cabinet from among the members of the leading party or coalition in the parliament.
The First legislature was inaugurated in May 1994 as the Northern Transvaal Provincial Legislature. It was renamed in 1995 to the Northern Province Provincial Legislature. The name was officially changed to the Limpopo Provincial Legislature in 2003.
The Sixth Legislature was elected on 8 May 2019 in South Africa's 2019 general election. A majority of the members belong to the African National Congress.

Powers

The Limpopo Legislature appoints the Premier of Limpopo, the head of Limpopo's provincial executive. The legislature can force the Premier to resign by passing a motion of no confidence. Although the Executive Council is selected by the Premier, the legislature may pass a motion of no confidence to force the Premier to restructure the Council. The legislature also appoints Limpopo's delegates to the National Council of Provinces, allocating delegates to parties in proportion to the number of seats each party holds in the legislature.
The legislature has the power to pass legislation in various fields stipulated in the national constitution; in some fields the legislative power is shared with the national parliament, while in others it is solely reserved to the province alone. The fields include health, education, agriculture, housing, environmental protection, and development planning.
The legislature oversees the administration of the Limpopo provincial government, and the Premier and the members of the Executive Council are required to report to the legislature on the performance of their responsibilities. The legislature also regulates the finances of the provincial government by way of the appropriation bills which determine the provincial budget.

Election

The Provincial Legislature consists of 49 members, who are elected through a system of party list proportional representation with closed lists. In other words, each voter casts a vote for one political party, and seats in the legislature are allocated to the parties in proportion to the number of votes received. The seats are then filled by members in accordance with lists submitted by the parties before the election.
The Legislature is elected for a term of five years unless it is dissolved early. This may occur if the legislature votes to dissolve and it is at least three years since the last election, or if the Premiership falls vacant and the legislature fails to elect a new Premier within ninety days. By convention, all nine provincial legislatures and the National Assembly are elected on the same day.
The most recent election was held on 8 May 2019. The following table summarises the results.
The following table shows the composition of the provincial parliament after past elections.
EventACDPANCCOPEDP/DAEFFFF/FF+NP/NNPPAC
1994 election038—0—110
1999 election144—1—111
2004 election145—2—100
2009 election04342—000
2014 election039136000
2019 election038037100

Officers

On 23 March 2020, the incumbent speaker Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya was appointed a Member of the Executive Council, therefore ceasing to be the speaker of the legislature. Deputy speaker Jeremy Ndou is now the acting speaker until the legislature elects a new permanent speaker.
NameEntered officeLeft officeParty
T.G. Mashamba19941999ANC
Robert Malavi19992004ANC
Tshenuwani Farisani20042009ANC
Rudolph Phala20092013ANC
Kwena Elias Nong20132014ANC
Merriam Ramadwa20142015ANC
Polly Boshielo20152019ANC
Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya20192020ANC

Members