the southern edge of the Danger Point peninsula, are Van Dyksbaai (pop. 500) and Franskraalstrand (pop. 1,165). A little further along the coast is Pearly Beach (pop. 1,042). Inland from Pearly Beach, separated from the coast by a range of hills, is the agricultural hamlet of Baardskeerdersbos (pop. 103), while Wolvengat (pop. 50) is another agricultural hamlet in the far south-east of the municipality. Politics The municipal council consists of twenty-five members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Thirteen councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in thirteen wards, while the remaining twelve are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. History By the end of the apartheid era in the early 1990s there were various local authorities established on a racially-segregated basis in the area that was to become Overstrand. Municipal councils were elected by the white residents of the towns of Betty's Bay, Kleinmond, Onrusrivier, Hermanus, Stanford, and Gansbaai; and local councils by the white residents of the villages and holiday resorts: Pringle Bay, Rooi-Els, Vermont, Sandbaai, Pearly Beach, De Kelders, Kleinbaai, and Franskraalstrand. The coloured areas of Kleinmond, Stanford, Hawston, Mount Pleasant and Gansbaai were governed by management committees subordinate to the white municipalities; and the black area of Zwelihle was governed by a town council established under the Black Local Authorities Act. Rural areas were served by the Overberg Regional Services Council. While the negotiations to end apartheid were taking place a process was established for local authorities to negotiate voluntary mergers. In January 1993 the Municipality of Kleinmond merged with its management committee to form a single Municipality for the Area of Kleinmond; and the Municipality of Gansbaai merged with its management committee and the local councils of De Kelders, Kleinbaai, Franskraalstrand and Pearly Beach to form a single Municipality for the Area of Gansbaai. In January 1994 the Betty's Bay Municipality merged with the local councils of Pringle Bay and Rooi-Els to form the Hangklip Municipality. 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 an outcome of these negotiations, transitional local councils (TLCs) were created and the existing local authorities were dissolved. In December 1994, the Greater Hermanus TLC replaced the Hermanus Municipality, the Onrusrivier Municipality, the Zwelihle Town Council, the