The woman silently gunning to be president of the ANC

The speaker of the National Assembly, Thoko Didiza, is quietly gaining support for the position of President of the African National Congress (ANC) come 2027.

Over the weekend, the Sunday Times reported that Didiza is gaining ground as a contender to succeed Cyril Ramaphosa as ANC President when his term comes to an end in 2027.

It is reported that Didiza has the support of Ramaphosa himself, as well as ANC national chairperson Gwede Mantashe, although Mantashe has dismissed claims that he and Ramaphosa are backing her.

Didiza’s candidacy is considered serious, with insiders revealing she’s been introduced to key ANC funders and major businesses.

She is also believed to be supported by factions aligned with former President Thabo Mbeki, given that Didiza was one of the high-ranking officials to have resigned after Mbeki was recalled.

While Didiza is playing her cards close to her chest, she has not dismissed the notion of her contending for the ANC’s top spot.

In a recent interview on the African Renaissance Podcast, Didiza suggested that if the ANC collectively felt her leadership was needed, she would consider it.

She emphasised that the party decides based on the current situation and required skills, and leadership is a collective effort, not an individual decision.

She noted that anyone reflecting on such a role would naturally consider the party’s goals, including winning the 2026 elections.

While Ramaphosa is reported to have initially favored his close ally, Senzo Mchunu, as his successor, allegations against him have dashed that hope, though some KwaZulu-Natal leaders suggest it is premature to decide.

Didiza is expected to go head-to-head with Deputy President Paul Mashatile and party Secretary General Fikile Mbalula.

Like all other ANC leadership contests, the race is expected to be fiercely contested.

Mashatile is making inroads in his home province of Gauteng, the North West, as well as parts of Limpopo, while Mbalula is seeing gains in the Free State, Mpumalanga, and the Western Cape.

Who is Thoko Didiza?

Didiza was born in Durban in 1965. She attended Ohlange School in Inanda, where she met future Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo, her political mentor.

Though she had no tertiary education during apartheid, she later earned a BA and Honours in politics from UNISA and a Master’s in tertiary education management from the University of Melbourne.

Didiza began her career as a legal secretary before joining the Diakonia Ecumenical Church Agency, through which she entered politics.

She was active in the ANC underground, the Natal Women’s Organisation, the YWCA, and the South African Council of Churches.

Didiza helped repatriate exiles during apartheid and served as the first secretary-general of the Women’s National Coalition.

She also joined the ANC Youth League and was nominated as an ANC candidate in South Africa’s first post-apartheid elections in 1994.

That same year, Nelson Mandela appointed Didiza as Deputy Minister of Agriculture, where she served until 1999.

A political ally of Mandela’s successor, President Thabo Mbeki, she rose to prominence within Mbeki’s cabinet.

Dudiza served as Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs from June 1999 to May 2006, and then as Minister of Public Works from May 2006 to September 2008.

She was one of several ministers who resigned following Mbeki’s recall by the ANC in September 2008. 

After a break from frontline politics between 2008 and 2014, Didiza returned to Parliament as a house chairperson in the National Assembly, serving throughout the fifth democratic Parliament.

During this time, she unsuccessfully tried to be the ANC’s candidate for Mayor of Tshwane in 2016, but her nomination triggered several days of unrest among party supporters.

Didiza rejoined the cabinet in 2019 as Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development under Ramaphosa, and following the 2024 general election, she was elected Speaker of the National Assembly.