BLOEMFONTEIN, South Africa, (Reuters) – South Africa’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) re-elected President Jacob Zuma as its leader yesterday, setting him up for seven more years as head of state of Africa’s biggest economy.
Nelson Mandela’s 100-year-old liberation movement also chose respected businessman Cyril Ramaphosa as his deputy, seeking to repair the image of a Zuma administration battered by corruption scandals and strikes and facing growing discontent among the poor black majority. More than 4,000 ANC delegates crammed into a marquee in the central city of Bloemfontein erupted into wild cheers when Zuma was confirmed in the top party post after comfortably seeing off a challenge by Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe.
Given the ANC’s dominance at the ballot-box less than two decades after the end of apartheid, 70-year-old Zuma is virtually assured a second, five-year term as President of South Africa in 2014 elections. The rand briefly edged higher against the dollar, reflecting relief among investors at the prospect of policies remaining largely unchanged.
After the vote, the beaming president, who secured 2,995 votes out of 3,977 cast, walked on stage to shake hands with his fellow ‘comrades’ – a label reflecting the ANC’s roots in the communist-backed struggle against decades of white-minority rule.