51st National Conference of the African National Congress

51st National Conference of the African National Congress
← 1997 16–20 December 2002 (2002-12-16 – 2002-12-20) 2007 →
3,400 party delegates
 
Candidate Thabo Mbeki
Delegate vote Unopposed
President before election

Thabo Mbeki

 Elected President

Thabo Mbeki

The 51st National Conference of the African National Congress (ANC) was held at the University of Stellenbosch in Stellenbosch, Western Cape, from 16 to 20 December 2002, during the ANC's 90th anniversary.[1] President Thabo Mbeki was re-elected to the party presidency and, notably, there was no change in other five top leadership positions except for Deputy Secretary General. There was also little competition for other spots on the National Executive Committee (NEC). This ANC conference has thus been called "the quietest in its history."[2]

The theme of the conference was "People's Power in Action – Phambili Mavoluntiya – Afrika ke Nako."[3] 3,400 voting delegates attended, including 3,060 from the provincial branches.[1] The Zimbabwean ruling party, Zanu-PF, were also invited as observers.[4][5] Alongside Mbeki, the conference re-elected Jacob Zuma as Deputy President, Kgalema Motlanthe as Secretary General, Terror Lekota as National Chairperson, and Mendi Msimang as Treasurer General; the new addition was Sankie Mthembi-Mahanyele, who was appointed unopposed as Deputy Secretary General when the incumbent declined to take another term.

Despite tensions within the party – including rumours of potential electoral challenges to Mbeki and other top leaders – and between Mbeki and the ANC's Tripartite Alliance partners, the only significant disagreement among delegates was about a resolution supporting Black Economic Empowerment, which was ultimately adopted. The conference is often remembered for Mbeki's biting speech during the closing session, which some commentators believe exacerbated divisions between Mbeki and the party's left wing.[6] At the 2004 general elections, to which the conference was a precursor, the ANC won a supermajority of 69.69% of the national vote, the most it had won since 1994 or has won since.

  1. ^ a b "51st National Conference, 2002". ANC. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  2. ^ Friedman, Steven (26 February 2013). "ANC can't control its campaigning". Rhodes University. Archived from the original on 5 August 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  3. ^ Radebe, Jeff (13 August 2002). "51st National Conference: Policy and Political Processes towards Conference". ANC. Archived from the original on 9 November 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  4. ^ "All eyes on Boesak, Winnie at ANC conference". The Mail & Guardian. 1 January 2002. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  5. ^ Lodge, Tom (2004). "The ANC and the Development of Party Politics in Modern South Africa". The Journal of Modern African Studies. 42 (2): 189–219. doi:10.1017/S0022278X04000096. ISSN 0022-278X. JSTOR 3876224. S2CID 153480701.
  6. ^ Gevisser, Mark (31 March 2009). A Legacy of Liberation: Thabo Mbeki and the Future of the South African Dream. St. Martin's Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-230-62020-9.