The ANC this week is expected to publish the names of the 18 candidates who are vying for the top positions and who have made it onto the ballot for the 55th national elective conference.
Branches across the country concluded the nominations process on November 7, putting forward their preferred candidates for the top six positions - as well as for 80 additional members who will form part of the ANC's national executive committee.
The party’s electoral committee has been busy with the vetting process and the collection of acceptance forms and CVs will follow that process.
The committee is scheduled to announce candidates for the positions of president, deputy president, chairperson, treasurer, secretary-general and deputy secretary-general this week.
After the announcement, the electoral committee, which is headed by former President Kgalema Motlanthe, will send acceptance forms to the 18 candidates nominated for these Top six positions.
Once candidates accept, the electoral committee will check if the candidates are affected by the rules that do not permit certain members to stand, such as those found guilty of or facing charges of serious crime, and issues of ethical or immoral conduct.
Both leading candidates for the presidency President Cyril Ramaphosa and former health minister Zweli Mkhize will face scrutiny by the electoral committee.
A parliamentary appointed independent panel of experts has until November 30 to determine whether Ramaphosa has a case to answer regarding the Phala Phala farm scandal.
The panel was formed after the ATM submitted a motion of no confidence against Ramaphosa after former spy boss Arthur Fraser, laid a criminal case against Ramaphosa and former head of the Presidential Protection Unit, Wally Rhoode, for allegedly kidnapping and torturing five men and a woman to reveal where they hid millions in foreign currency stolen from the president’s farm.
Mkhize resigned as the health minister in August 2021 when he was implicated in the irregular awarding of contracts to Digital Vibes, which was linked to people who worked with him at the department, the Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department and the ANC. He has gone to court to have the SIU report reviewed and set aside.