The Leadership Contest and the Results of the 53rd African National Congress’s (ANC’s) National Elective Conference in Mangaung (Bloemfontein), 16-20 December 2012: Democracy Unfolding?

The year 2012 was a historic one for the ruling African National Congress (ANC) in South Africa. The party started the year by successfully celebrating its 100 years on 8 January 2012 in Mangaung (Bloemfontein) and ended it by hosting the 53rd National Elective Conference in the very same city on 16-20 December 2012 at the University of the Free State (UFS) Bloemfontein Campus. Despite of all the leadership and policy challenges the party was faced with ahead of this conference, in order to bring remarkable changes within itself, its leadership tried to mastermind this national elective conference in a professional way. This study analyses the leadership contest and the results of this conference by highlighting the tensions that existed between the supporters of the two candidates vying for the president’s position. Furthermore, it scrutinises the emergence of slates within the party, a phenomenon that divided it into two contesting groups, namely, the Jacob Zuma’s camp (which supported his second term as President of the ANC) and the Kgalema Motlanthe’s camp (popularly viewed as ‘Regime Change’ group). The latter campaigned for preventing Zuma from getting a second term. This leadership division and contest within ANC prior and after the Mangaung Conference had both the social and political consequences for the South Africa electorate. Critical issues confronting the ANC, which include among others, the status of the party’s post the Mangaung Conference will be discussed. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n3p59