Zuma wins ANC leadership vote
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- Created on Tuesday, 18 December 2012 16:10
President Jacob Zuma won a second term as African National Congress leader on Tuesday.
He received 2,983 votes against Kgalema Motlanthe’s 991.
Cyril Ramaphosa won the vote to become the party's Deputy President.
The millionaire businessman received 3,018 votes against Tokyo Sexwale’s 463 and Mathews Phosa’s 470.
Zuma's win at the ANC elective conference tees him up for another seven years as head of state.
The more than 4,000 ANC delegates crammed into a marquee in Bloemfontein erupted into wild cheers when Zuma was confirmed in the top party post. A beaming Zuma then walked on stage to shake hands with his colleagues and members of the party’s election commission..
More results:
Gwede Mantashe will retain his position as secretary-general of the African National Congress. He was re-elected with 3,058 votes. He defeated Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula, who got 901 votes.
KwaZulu-Natal ANC chairman Zweli Mkhize will take over the position of party treasurer general from Mathews Phosa. Mkhize got 2,988 votes. He defeated Gauteng ANC chairman Paul Mashatile, who got 961 votes.
Jessie Duarte has been elected deputy secretary-general. She stood for the position uncontested after the incumbent, Thandi Modise, withdrew her candidacy on Monday.
Baleka Mbete retains her position as ANC chairwoman. She received 3,010 votes. Current deputy secretary-general Thandi Modise was the other candidate, but only received 939 votes.
President Jacob Zuma swept to victory in a battle for the ANC leadership, while Kgalema Motlanthe is heading for the political wilderness.
Zuma received 2 983 votes while Motlanthe received 991, signalling a spectacular failure of the campaign launched by a lobby calling themselves the Forces of Change to unseat him.
In a cruel twist of fate for Motlanthe, he remained in the front row of the packed conference tent as the victor ascended to the stage to deafening cheers from the jubilant crowd.
While Zuma has been immersed in controversy as state president, with a series of scandals and negative publicity dogging his administration, his popularity in the ANC solidified in the past few months as his supporters pulled out all the stops to secure his second term.
It remains to be seen whether the party victory guarantees that he would top the ANC ticket in the 2014 national election or be replaced by the man who made a phenomenal return to politics at Mangaung.
Zuma's partnering with business tycoon Cyril Ramaphosa – who has been absent from active politics since the mid-nineties – proved to be a winning combination which outsmarted the Forces of Change campaign whose candidate for president was a reluctant contender from the start.
The ANC's 53rd national conference will probably be remembered more for Motlanthe's fall rather than Zuma's epic victory. Motlanthe's lack of enthusiasm and unwillingness to engage in discussions or campaigning around the leadership battle disorientated the Forces of Change.
His strategy to accept nominations for all the positions for which he was proposed caught his supporters off guard. Then, when nominations were announced, he withdrew his candidacy for deputy president, guaranteeing his exit from the ANC top brass.
He still stands a chance of being elected to the ANC national executive committee if Zuma's supporters decide not to punish him for remaining steadfast in contesting the presidency.
The rest of the winners
Ramaphosa won the position of deputy president with 3 018 votes – even higher than Zuma's tally – beating Mathews Phosa who received 470 votes and Tokyo Sexwale with 463 votes.
Gwede Mantashe beat Fikile Mbalula with 3 058 to 901 votes to retain the position of secretary general. Baleka Mbete also retained her position of national chairperson with 3 010 against Thandi Modise's 939.
Jessie Duarte was elected unopposed as deputy secretary general. ANC KwaZulu-Natal chairperson Zweli Mkhize won the position of national treasurer with 2 988 against Paul Mashatile's 961.
After the votes were announced, the ANC chaplain prayed for the losing slate. It was a face-saving exercise and an attempt at bridging unity ... but history will never remember the ANC's 2012 Mangaung conference in that way. – Newsfire
