The ANC has given its provincial structures until March to hold their elective conferences.

This comes after the party held its last national executive committee (NEC) meeting of the year on Friday. 

The party has been holding delayed regional conferences this month after local government election campaigning and Covid-19 lockdown regulations halted bigger political gatherings.

So far, only the Northern Cape has held a successful elective conference in the lead-up to next year's national conference, where party president Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to seek to retain his position.

In the last week, a number of regions in the Eastern Cape and Limpopo have elected new leaders.

Four provinces — Mpumalanga, North West, the Western Cape and Free State — are without properly elected party leadership.

The ANC in Mpumalanga has been without a provincial chairperson since the election of David Mabuza as deputy president of the party in 2017.

The Western Cape has not had a chairperson since it kicked out Marius Fransman in 2016 over allegations of sexual assault.

The North West has also been without a chairperson since the removal of Supra Mahumapelo, a strong supporter of former president Jacob Zuma, in 2018.

In the Free State, the provincial ANC leadership under Sam Mashinini, one of suspended secretary-general Ace Magashule’s strongest supporters, was recently disbanded and replaced with an interim team led by Mxolisi Dukwana and premier Sisi Ntombela.   

In a statement, the NEC said it also expected its youth league to hold an elective conference next year.

The party said it will finally hold its national policy conference which was delayed because of the Covid-19 lockdown.

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