ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula ended a turbulent week with a major legal victory for the party, but the Constitutional Court ruling did little to settle questions about his leadership style.
The court ruled in the ANC’s favour on Thursday in its bid to have 181 councillor candidates reinstated after the party failed to complete the Electoral Commission of South Africa’s online submission process before the deadline for the November 4 local government elections.
The judgment was a relief for the ANC, which risked going into the polls without candidates in key affected areas. But the dispute had also placed Mbalula, who oversees the party’s organisational administration, under pressure.
Health scare after high-stakes ruling
After the ruling, Mbalula became visibly unwell while speaking to journalists. ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu said both he and his personal assistant had received medical attention.
“I can’t exactly indicate the place they are at, but they have been attended medically, and we are certain that the secretary-general is going to be okay, together with Comrade Zodwa, his PA,” Bhengu said.
Bhengu suggested that the strain of the court proceedings and the emotions surrounding the case may have contributed to the episode.
“It is a function of how emotional this process has been. It’s a function of also inside there it was really heated,” she said.
The cause of Mbalula’s condition has not been independently established. His episode has come against the backdrop of an increasingly difficult period for the secretary-general, whose handling of the candidate nomination process has become a point of contention within the ANC.
Leadership style under the spotlight
Mbalula has often adopted a combative approach when defending his position in the party. In May, he asserted his authority by declaring according to reports. “I’m the secretary-general of the ANC, I’m the boss here.”
The remark drew attention to his leadership style and tensions involving other senior figures, including ANC chief whip Mdumiseni Ntuli. It reflected the assertiveness with which Mbalula has occupied the office, but also the friction that can accompany his approach.
Candidate list crisis raises accountability questions
The candidate-list controversy has since turned questions about his authority into a practical test of the ANC’s organisational systems. The party failed to complete the final online submission for 181 candidates by the IEC’s deadline. The ANC argued that problems with the electronic process had contributed to the failure, while the commission maintained that the submissions had not been properly finalised.
The Constitutional Court’s decision gives the affected candidates a path back into the electoral contest. It does not, on its own, resolve questions about how the ANC allowed the deadline to pass or who should account for the administrative failure.
Growing internal resistance
The dispute has also unfolded alongside signs of resistance within the party. In September, Sunday World reported that President Cyril Ramaphosa had cautioned ANC leaders against using the candidate-list crisis as an opportunity to seek Mbalula’s removal, amid growing opposition to the secretary-general within the party’s national executive structures.
Tensions were also on display recently in New Brighton in the Eastern Cape, where ANC members challenged national working committee leaders and demanded that Mbalula attend a meeting. The members had waited for hours, according to Nelson Mandela Bay members who cited frustration over the delay and the secretary-general’s absence. An unnamed NWC member separately suggested the incident reflected a wider attempt to weaken Mbalula’s position.
Legal battles compound political pressure
Mbalula has also had to contend with a separate court dispute involving ANC national executive committee member Andile Lungisa. The Johannesburg High Court last week ruled against the party’s decision to remove Lungisa from its Nelson Mandela Bay proportional representation candidate list, adding another legal complication to the ANC’s candidate-selection process.
The disputes come as Mbalula’s own political future is being discussed ahead of the ANC’s 2027 national elective conference. Mbalula has, according to reports, been eyeing either the ANC presidency or deputy presidency.
Mbalula’s possible leadership ambitions add another dimension to the scrutiny he faces. The 2027 conference is expected to shape the party’s next leadership team, and the secretary-general’s handling of the current organisational challenges may form part of how his leadership is assessed by party members. However, it remains unclear how the candidate-list dispute will affect any future bid, and his intentions should not be treated as settled without a clear public confirmation.
Coalition tensions emerge after victory
The succession discussion is unfolding as the ANC prepares for local government elections and faces questions about its ability to manage internal disagreements while campaigning. For Mbalula, the challenge is not only to help the party recover from the candidate-list crisis but also to maintain the confidence of structures whose support will matter in the run-up to the conference.
After Thursday’s Constitutional Court victory, Mbalula defended the case as a matter of democratic rights rather than an administrative disagreement.
“The right to vote is not a privilege handed down by an institution. It is not a setting in a computer program, and it is not a pattern on a screen. It is a fundamental right, and it belongs to the people,” he said.
He also used his remarks to raise the ANC’s relationship with its government of national unity partner, the Democratic Alliance.
“There are matters, comrades, that this movement will now have to sit down and discuss. And one of those matters is our partners in the Government of National Unity, and that is the DA. We must review the DA in the Government of National Unity,” he said.
The call for a review shifted some of the focus towards the future of the coalition, even as the ANC celebrated its court success.
Breathing room, but unanswered questions
For Mbalula, the judgment removes an immediate electoral threat, but leaves the party with difficult questions about the process that led to the litigation. He must now help steer the ANC towards the campaign while dealing with criticism over its administration and signs of discontent among party members.
The court victory gives him breathing room. Whether it will strengthen confidence in his leadership, and how that confidence will shape his prospects ahead of 2027 remain open questions.
- The Constitutional Court ruled in favor of the ANC, allowing 181 councillor candidates to be reinstated after missed online submissions for local government elections.
- ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula fell ill after the ruling, receiving medical attention alongside his personal assistant; strain from the court proceedings is suggested as a contributing factor.
- Mbalula's leadership style has faced scrutiny, highlighted by his assertive declaration "I’m the secretary-general of the ANC, I’m the boss here," and tensions with party members.
- Internal resistance to Mbalula exists within the ANC, including President Cyril Ramaphosa warning leaders against using the candidate-list crisis to oust him.
- Mbalula connected the court victory to broader political issues, calling for a review of the ANC’s coalition with the Democratic Alliance amid preparations for the 2027 national elective conference.
