Polokwane – Senior African National Congress figures in South Africa’s Limpopo province are heading into a heated leadership contest ahead of the party’s 11th provincial elective conference scheduled for early 2026, with women leaders openly calling for a shift away from male-dominated leadership, according to a report by The Citizen.
Former national ANC Women’s League member Makoma Grace Makhurupetje said women were tired of being sidelined in top political positions and confined to deputy roles. Speaking on Friday, she said the Limpopo ANC has been led by men for more than three decades and argued that the upcoming conference should deliver women as the majority in the top five provincial leadership positions.
Her remarks came shortly after ANC Limpopo provincial secretary Vhamusanda Reuben Madadzhe announced that the elective conference would take place before winter in 2026. Madadzhe was addressing the media following a special provincial executive committee meeting held at Frans Mohlala House, the party’s provincial headquarters in Polokwane.
He said the conference is scheduled to run from 27 March to 2 April 2026, with the venue yet to be finalised. Madadzhe added that the PEC had established a provincial conference preparatory committee tasked with coordinating the process in line with the ANC constitution. This includes circulating conference information, setting delegate selection procedures and handling logistics.
The announcement has triggered intense lobbying among senior party figures seeking to secure positions in the province’s top leadership structure. ANC Limpopo spokesperson Mathole Jimmy Machaka said lobbying began once the PEC adopted the roadmap to the conference, adding that the party operates under a single centre of authority.
Makhurupetje, who is currently the Speaker of the Limpopo Provincial Legislature, reiterated her stance during her birthday celebration held in Mothomeng Village in Bolobedu near the Modjadji Rain Queen’s Palace just before Christmas. She described the 2026 conference as a turning point for women’s political participation and said the era of male dominance in Limpopo ANC leadership should come to an end.
Tracing her political roots back to school activism in the 1980s and her rise through the ANC Youth structures, Makhurupetje said women had proven their capacity to lead. She pointed to several senior government positions currently occupied by women in the province and questioned why the ANC itself could not follow the same path.
Her call received backing from newly elected ANC Youth League secretary general Tsakani Goodness Shiviti, who also attended the event. Shiviti said the youth league supports leadership renewal driven by women and young people, particularly as local government elections approach.
She said the ANCYL wants young leaders positioned across municipalities and provincial structures, including mayoral and executive roles. Shiviti also said she would support efforts to ensure that more than half of the top leadership positions at the provincial conference are occupied by young people.
Limpopo province is made up of five districts Mopani, Vhembe, Sekhukhune, Capricorn and Waterberg. Shiviti called on the ANC leadership to ensure at least one youth league mayor emerges in each district after the conference.
Attention is also turning to who will succeed current provincial chairperson Chupu Stanley Mathabatha, whose term ends in June. Polokwane mayor Makoro John Mpe and Limpopo’s first female premier Dr Phophi Ramathuba are among the names being discussed as possible contenders, with the final decision resting with conference delegates.
