Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa won the endorsement of a fifth province to succeed President Jacob Zuma as head of the ruling party, giving him a commanding lead in the nomination process with just one region still to declare its preference. Ramaphosa was endorsed for the presidency of the ANC by 391 branches in Limpopo, while 104 backed his main rival Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, tallies released Monday at a party meeting in Polokwane show. The province will account for about 12% of the 5,240 voting delegates at the ANC’s national conference that is due to start on December 16, the fourth most of the nine regions. While the branch nomination numbers are the best available indicator of who is likely to win, they are not conclusive because some bigger branches are entitled to more than one delegate and there is no guarantee delegates will vote as instructed. The ANC’s new leader will be its presidential candidate in 2019 elections, which will bring an end to Zuma’s second term. The elect...
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