ANC Western Cape elective conference to kick off in Cape Town

The Western Cape African National Congress (ANC) is expected to elect new leadership for the first time in eight years at its elective conference, which is set to kick off on Friday, at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

ANC Western Cape conference

The ANC in the province, which is governed by the Democratic Alliance (DA), is the only province that failed to go to conference ahead of the governing party’s 55th elective conference, which took place in Nasrec, south of Johannesburg, in December last year.

Among the leading contenders for the provincial chairperson position include ANC MP Richard Dyantyi, current ANC leader in the provincial legislature Cameron Dugmore, and senior government official Justin de Allende.

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Former Hawks head Anwa Dramat is said to be the frontrunner to be the next provincial secretary.

The ANC in the Western Cape last elected permanent leadership in 2015, when Marius Fransman was elected provincial chair and Faiez Jacobs was elected provincial secretary.

However, Fransman was fired by the party a year later, and the provincial leadership was dissolved due to internal infighting and factions.

700 delegates set to attend

More than 700 delegates are expected to attend the conference, with 650 being delegates from the branches, the regional executive committees, the interim provincial committee (IPC) and the leagues.

The remaining 50 delegates will be guests from alliance partners, fraternal organisations, and other stakeholders.

On Wednesday, the party released its conference discussion papers which focus on organisational renewal ahead of next year’s general elections, women and gender equality, and how the broader socio-economic challenges of South Africans can be resolved.

The conference will be opened by ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula on Friday, and is expected to be closed by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday.

The conference is seen as a critical opportunity for the ANC in the Western Cape to rebuild its structures and unite the party ahead of the 2024 general elections.

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