Editing African National Congress

{{Short description|Political party in South Africa}}
{{Redirect|ANC}}
{{For|the defunct political party in Trinidad and Tobago|African National Congress (Trinidad and Tobago)}}
{{Pp-pc}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox political party
| name             = African National Congress
| logo             = African National Congress logo.svg
| logo_size        = 125
| colorcode        = {{party color|African National Congress}}
| abbreviation     = ANC
| president        = [[Cyril Ramaphosa]]
| secretary_general = [[Fikile Mbalula]]
| governing_body   = [[National Executive Committee of the African National Congress|National Executive Committee]]
| spokesperson     = [[Mahlengi Bhengu]]
| leader1_title    = Deputy President
| leader1_name     = [[Paul Mashatile]]
| leader2_title    = Chairperson
| leader2_name     = [[Gwede Mantashe]]
| leader3_title    = First Deputy Secretary-General
| leader3_name     = [[Nomvula Mokonyane]]
| leader4_title    = Second Deputy Secretary-General
| leader4_name     = [[Maropene Ramokgopa]]
| leader5_title    = Treasurer-General
| leader5_name     = [[Gwen Ramokgopa]]
| founders         = {{Plainlist|
* [[John Langalibalele Dube]]
* [[Pixley ka Isaka Seme]]
* [[Sol Plaatje]]
}}
| founded          = {{start date and age|1912|01|08|df=y}}
| legalised        = {{start date and age|1990|02|03|df=y}}
| headquarters     = [[Luthuli House]]<br />54 Sauer Street<br />[[Johannesburg]]<br />[[Gauteng]]
| newspaper        = [[ANC Today]]
| think_tank       = 
| student_wing     = 
| youth_wing       = [[African National Congress Youth League|ANC Youth League]]
| womens_wing      = [[African National Congress Women's League|ANC Women's League]]
| wing1_title      = Veterans' wing
| wing1            = [[African National Congress Veterans' League|ANC Veterans' League]]
| wing2_title      = Paramilitary wing
| wing2            = [[uMkhonto weSizwe]] (until 1993)
| membership_year  = 2022
| membership       = {{decrease}} 661,489<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harper |first=Paddy |title=Existential crisis-ANC membership drops by more than one third in five years |url= https://mg.co.za/politics/2022-12-18-existential-crisis-anc-membership-drops-by-more-than-one-third-in-five-years/ |access-date=December 18, 2022|website=Mail and Guardian|date=18 December 2022 }}</ref>
| ideology         = [[Social democracy]]{{refn|<ref>{{cite web | url=https://africaelects.com/south-africa/ | title=South Africa • Africa Elects }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/248962779|title=How Democratic is the African National Congress? &#124; Request PDF|accessdate=16 February 2024}}</ref>}}<br>[[African nationalism]]{{refn|<ref>{{cite book | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.18772/22012115737 | jstor=10.18772/22012115737 |doi=10.18772/22012115737 | title=One Hundred Years of the ANC | date=2012 | isbn=978-1-77614-287-3 | editor-last1=Lissoni | editor-last2=Soske | editor-last3=Erlank | editor-last4=Nieftagodien | editor-last5=Badsha | editor-first1=Arianna | editor-first2=JON | editor-first3=Natasha | editor-first4=Noor | editor-first5=Omar }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/484771 | jstor=484771 | title=The African National Congress of South Africa: The Limitations of a Revolutionary Strategy | last1=Fatton | first1=Robert | journal=Canadian Journal of African Studies / Revue Canadienne des Études Africaines | date=2 February 1984 | volume=18 | issue=3 | pages=593–608 | doi=10.1080/00083968.1984.10804082 | url-access=subscription }}</ref>}}
| position         = [[Centre-left politics|Centre-left]]<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.europeansocialsurvey.org/docs/related_studies/SASAS_2014/sasas2014_a3_political_parties_e01_0.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.europeansocialsurvey.org/docs/related_studies/SASAS_2014/sasas2014_a3_political_parties_e01_0.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |title= South Africa |work= European Social Survey |access-date=12 March 2019}}</ref>
| national         = [[Tripartite Alliance]]
| international    = [[Socialist International]]<ref name=socialistinternational>{{cite journal|url=http://www.anc1912.org.za/show.php?id=2841|title=The ANC and the Socialist International|first=Vulindlela|last=Mapekuka|journal=Umrabulo|volume=30|date=November 2007|publisher=African National Congress|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110924034626/http://anc.org.za/show.php?id=2841|archive-date=24 September 2011}}</ref><br>[[For the Freedom of Nations!]]
| affiliation1_title = African affiliation
| affiliation1     = [[Former Liberation Movements of Southern Africa]]
| colours          = {{ubl|{{color box|Black}} Black|{{color box|Green}} Green|{{color box|Gold}} Gold}}
| slogan           = ''South Africa's National Liberation Movement''
| anthem           = "[[Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika]]"<br>('Lord Bless Africa')<br>[[File:"Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" performed at the White House in 1994.oga|100px|Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika]]
| seats1_title     = [[National Assembly of South Africa|National Assembly]] seats
| seats1           = {{Composition bar|159|400|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
| seats2_title     = [[National Council of Provinces|NCOP]] seats
| seats2           = {{Composition bar|43|90|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
| seats3_title     = Control of NCOP delegations
| seats3           = {{Composition bar|8|9|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
| seats4_title     = [[Pan-African Parliament]]
| seats4           = {{Composition bar|3|5|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}<small>(South African seats)</small>
| seats5_title     = [[Provincial legislature (South Africa)|Provincial Legislatures]]
| seats5           = {{Composition bar|255|487|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
| seats6_title     = [[City of Cape Town|Cape Town City Council]]
| seats6           = {{Composition bar|43|231|hex={{party colour|African National Congress}}}}
| symbol           = 
| flag             = Flag of the African National Congress.svg
| website          = {{Official URL}}
| country          = South Africa
| footnotes        = 
}}

The '''African National Congress''' ('''ANC''') is a political party in [[South Africa]]. It originated as a [[liberation movement]] known for its opposition to [[apartheid]] and has governed the country since 1994, when the [[1994 South African general election|first post-apartheid election]] resulted in [[Nelson Mandela]] being elected as [[President of South Africa]]. [[Cyril Ramaphosa]], the incumbent national president, has served as president of the ANC since 18 December 2017.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/18/cyril-ramaphosa-chosen-to-lead-south-africas-ruling-anc-party|title=Cyril Ramaphosa chosen to lead South Africa's ruling ANC party|last=Burke|first=Jason|date=2017-12-18|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=19 December 2017|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

Founded on 8 January 1912 in [[Bloemfontein]] as the '''South African Native National Congress''', the organisation was formed to advocate for the rights of [[Bantu peoples of South Africa|black South Africans]]. When the [[National Party (South Africa)|National Party]] government came to power [[1948 South African general election|in 1948]], the ANC's central purpose became to oppose the new government's policy of institutionalised [[apartheid]]. To this end, its methods and means of organisation shifted; its adoption of the techniques of [[mass politics]], and the swelling of its membership, culminated in the [[Defiance Campaign]] of [[civil disobedience]] in 1952–53. The ANC was banned by the South African government between April 1960 – shortly after the [[Sharpeville massacre]] – and February 1990. During this period, despite periodic attempts to revive its domestic political underground, the ANC was forced into exile by increasing state repression, which saw many of its leaders imprisoned on [[Robben Island (prison)|Robben Island]]. Headquartered in [[Lusaka|Lusaka, Zambia]], the exiled ANC dedicated much of its attention to a campaign of [[sabotage]] and [[guerrilla warfare]] against the apartheid state, carried out under its military wing, [[uMkhonto weSizwe]], which was founded in 1961 in partnership with the [[South African Communist Party]] (SACP). The ANC was condemned as a [[Terrorism|terrorist]] organisation by the governments of South Africa, the [[United States]], and the [[United Kingdom]]. However, it positioned itself as a key player in the [[Negotiations to end apartheid in South Africa|negotiations to end apartheid]], which began in earnest after the ban was repealed in 1990. For much of that time, the ANC leadership, along with many of its most active members, operated from abroad. After the Soweto Uprising of 1976, the ANC remained committed to achieving its objectives through armed struggle, led by its military wing, uMkhonto weSizwe. These circumstances significantly shaped the ANC during its years in exile.<ref name=":1" />

In the post-apartheid era, the ANC continues to identify itself foremost as a [[liberation movement]], although it is also a registered political party. Partly due to its [[Tripartite Alliance]] with the [[South African Communist Party]] (SACP) and the [[Congress of South African Trade Unions]], it had retained a comfortable electoral majority at the national level and in most provinces, and has provided each of South Africa's five presidents since 1994. South Africa is considered a [[Dominant-party system|dominant-party state]]. However, the ANC's electoral majority has declined consistently since 2004, and in the [[2021 South African municipal elections|2021 local elections]], its share of the national vote dropped below 50% for the first time ever.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cele |first=S'thembile |date=2021-11-04 |title=ANC Support Falls Below 50% for First Time in South African Vote |language=en |work=Bloomberg |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-04/anc-support-falls-below-50-for-first-time-in-south-african-vote |access-date=2022-07-25}}</ref> Over the last decade, the party has been embroiled in a number of controversies, particularly relating to widespread allegations of [[Corruption in South Africa|political corruption]] among its members.

Following the [[2024 South African general election|2024 general election]], the ANC lost its majority in parliament for the first time in South Africa's democratic history. However, it still remained the largest party, with just over 40% of the vote.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2024/06/01/nx-s1-4987616/south-africa-election-results|title=In a historic election, South Africa's ANC loses majority for the first time|publisher=NPR|date=1 June 2024|accessdate=1 June 2024}}</ref> The party also lost its majority in Kwa-Zulu Natal, Gauteng and Northern Cape. Despite these setbacks, the ANC retained power at the national level through a [[grand coalition]] referred to as the [[2024 South African government formation|Government of National Unity]], including parties which together have 72% of the seats in [[Parliament of South Africa|Parliament]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8007w4vqveo|title=ANC and DA agree on South Africa unity government|first1=Farouk|last1=Chothia|first2=Danai Kesta|last2=Kupemba|first3=Barbra|last3=Plett-Usher|publisher=BBC News|date=14 June 2024|accessdate=14 June 2024}}</ref>

== History ==
{{Main|History of the African National Congress}}

=== Origins ===
[[File:ANC1914.jpg|thumb|A South African Native National Congress delegation to England, June 1914. L–R: [[Thomas Mtobi Mapikela]], [[Walter Rubusana]], [[John Langalibalele Dube]], [[Saul Msane]], and [[Sol Plaatje]].|left]]

A successor of the [[Cape Colony]]'s Imbumba Yamanyama organisation, the ANC was founded as the South African Native National Congress in [[Bloemfontein]] on 8 January 1912, and was renamed the African National Congress in 1923. [[Pixley ka Isaka Seme]], [[Sol Plaatje]], [[John Langalibalele Dube]], and [[Walter Rubusana]] founded the organisation, who, like much of the ANC's early membership, were from the [[Conservatism|conservative]], educated, and religious professional classes of black South African society.<ref name="Lodge-1983">{{Cite book |last=Lodge |first=Tom |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AY5tmwEACAAJ |title=Black Politics in South Africa Since 1945 |date=1983 |publisher=Ravan Press |isbn=978-0-86975-152-7 |pages=1–32 |language=en |chapter=Black protest before 1950 |access-date=27 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231044524/https://books.google.com/books?id=AY5tmwEACAAJ |archive-date=31 December 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Butler-2012">{{Cite book |last=Butler |first=Anthony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WHziM0wtGgkC |title=The Idea of the ANC |date=2012 |publisher=Jacana Media |isbn=978-1-4314-0578-7 |language=en |access-date=27 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231044500/https://books.google.com/books?id=WHziM0wtGgkC |archive-date=31 December 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> Although they would not take part, Xhosa chiefs would show huge support for the organisation; as a result, [[Thembu|King Jongilizwe]] donated 50 cows to it during its founding.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}} Around 1920, in a partial shift away from its early focus on the "politics of petitioning",<ref name="Suttner-2012">{{Cite journal |last=Suttner |first=Raymond |date=2012 |title=The African National Congress centenary: a long and difficult journey |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23255615 |url-status=live |journal=International Affairs |volume=88 |issue=4 |pages=719–738 |doi=10.1111/j.1468-2346.2012.01098.x |issn=0020-5850 |jstor=23255615 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227212113/https://www.jstor.org/stable/23255615 |archive-date=27 December 2021 |access-date=27 December 2021|url-access=subscription }}</ref> the ANC developed a programme of [[Nonviolent resistance|passive resistance]] directed primarily at the expansion and entrenchment of [[pass law]]s.<ref name="Butler-2012" /><ref name="Clark-2016">{{Cite book |last1=Clark |first1=Nancy L. |title=South Africa: The Rise and Fall of Apartheid |last2=Worger |first2=William H. |date=2016 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-138-12444-8 |edition=3rd |location=Abingdon, Oxon |language=English |oclc=883649263}}</ref> When [[Josiah Tshangana Gumede|Josiah Gumede]] took over as ANC president in 1927, he advocated for a strategy of mass mobilisation and cooperation with the [[South African Communist Party|Communist Party]], but was voted out of office in 1930 and replaced with the traditionalist Seme, whose leadership saw the ANC's influence wane.<ref name="Lodge-1983" /><ref name="Suttner-2012" />

In the 1940s, [[Alfred Bitini Xuma]] revived some of Gumede's programmes, assisted by a surge in trade union activity and by the formation in 1944 of the left-wing [[African National Congress Youth League|ANC Youth League]] under a new generation of activists, among them [[Walter Sisulu]], [[Nelson Mandela]], and [[Oliver Tambo]].<ref name="Lodge-1983" /><ref name="Butler-2012" /> After the [[National Party (South Africa)|National Party]] was elected into government in 1948 on a platform of [[apartheid]], entailing the further institutionalisation of [[racial segregation]], this new generation pushed for a Programme of Action which explicitly advocated [[African nationalism]] and led the ANC, for the first time, to the sustained use of mass mobilisation techniques like strikes, stay-aways, and boycotts.<ref name="Butler-2012" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=1949-12-17 |title=38th National Conference: Programme Of Action: Statement of Policy Adopted |url=https://www.anc1912.org.za/policy-documents-1949-38th-national-conference-programme-of-action-statement-of-policy-adopted/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227180035/https://www.anc1912.org.za/policy-documents-1949-38th-national-conference-programme-of-action-statement-of-policy-adopted/ |archive-date=27 December 2021 |access-date=2021-12-27 |website=African National Congress |language=en-US}}</ref> This culminated in the 1952–53 [[Defiance Campaign]], a campaign of mass [[civil disobedience]] organised by the ANC, the [[South African Indian Congress|Indian Congress]], and the [[Coloureds|coloured]] Franchise Action Council in protest of six apartheid laws.<ref name="Lodge-1983a">{{Cite book |last=Lodge |first=Tom |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AY5tmwEACAAJ |title=Black Politics in South Africa Since 1945 |date=1983 |publisher=Ravan Press |isbn=978-0-86975-152-7 |pages=33–66 |language=en |chapter=The creation of a mass movement: strikes and defiance, 1950-1952 |access-date=27 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231044556/https://books.google.com/books?id=AY5tmwEACAAJ |archive-date=31 December 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> The ANC's membership swelled.<ref name="Suttner-2012"/> In June 1955, it was one of the groups represented at the multi-racial [[Congress of the People (1955)|Congress of the People]] in [[Kliptown|Kliptown, Soweto]], which ratified the [[Freedom Charter]], from then onwards a fundamental document in the [[Internal resistance to apartheid|anti-apartheid struggle]].<ref name="Suttner-2012" /> The Charter was the basis of the enduring [[Congress Alliance]], but was also used as a pretext to prosecute hundreds of activists, among them most of the ANC's leadership, in the [[1956 Treason Trial|Treason Trial]].<ref name="Lodge-1983b">{{Cite book |last=Lodge |first=Tom |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AY5tmwEACAAJ |title=Black Politics in South Africa Since 1945 |date=1983 |publisher=Ravan Press |isbn=978-0-86975-152-7 |pages=67–90 |language=en |chapter=African political organisations, 1953-1960}}</ref> Before the trial was concluded, the [[Sharpeville massacre]] occurred on 21 March 1960. In the aftermath, the ANC was banned by the South African government. It was not unbanned until February 1990, almost three decades later.

=== Exile in Lusaka ===
After its banning in April 1960, the ANC was driven underground, a process hastened by a barrage of government [[List of people subject to banning orders under apartheid|banning orders]], by an escalation of state repression, and by the imprisonment of senior ANC leaders pursuant to the [[Rivonia Trial|Rivonia trial]] and [[Little Rivonia Trial|Little Rivonia trial]].<ref name="Ellis-1991">{{Cite journal |last=Ellis |first=Stephen |date=1991 |title=The ANC in Exile |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/722941 |url-status=live |journal=African Affairs |volume=90 |issue=360 |pages=439–447 |doi=10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a098442 |issn=0001-9909 |jstor=722941 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211226235211/https://www.jstor.org/stable/722941 |archive-date=26 December 2021 |access-date=26 December 2021|url-access=subscription }}</ref> From around 1963, the ANC effectively abandoned much of even its underground presence inside South Africa and operated almost entirely from its external mission, with headquarters first in [[Morogoro|Morogoro, Tanzania]], and later in [[Lusaka|Lusaka, Zambia]].<ref name="ANC-1997">{{Cite book |author=African National Congress |url=https://www.justice.gov.za/trc/hrvtrans/submit/anc2.htm#Appendix%201 |title=Further submissions and responses by the African National Congress to questions raised by the Commission for Truth and Reconciliation |publisher=Department of Justice |year=1997 |location=Pretoria |chapter=Appendix: ANC structures and personnel |access-date=26 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211214114223/https://www.justice.gov.za/trc/hrvtrans/submit/anc2.htm#Appendix%201 |archive-date=14 December 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> For the entirety of its time in exile, the ANC was led by Tambo – first ''de facto'', with president [[Albert Luthuli]] under house arrest in [[Zululand District Municipality|Zululand]]; then in an acting capacity, after Luthuli's death in 1967; and, finally, officially, after a leadership vote in 1985.<ref name="Ellis-2013">{{Cite book |last=Ellis |first=Stephen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YdlMAgAAQBAJ |title=External Mission: The ANC in Exile, 1960–1990 |date=2013 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-933061-4 |language=en |access-date=27 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231044551/https://books.google.com/books?id=YdlMAgAAQBAJ |archive-date=31 December 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> Also notable about this period was the extremely close relationship between the ANC and the reconstituted [[South African Communist Party]] (SACP), which was also in exile.<ref name="Ellis-2013" />

===uMkhonto weSizwe===
{{main|uMkhonto weSizwe}}
In 1961, partly in response to the Sharpeville massacre, leaders of the SACP and the ANC formed a military body, [[uMkhonto weSizwe]] (MK, ''Spear of the Nation''), as a vehicle for armed struggle against the apartheid state. Initially, MK was not an official ANC body, nor had it been directly established by the ANC National Executive: it was considered an autonomous organisation, until such time as the ANC formally recognised it as its armed wing in October 1962.<ref name="Stevens-2019">{{Cite journal |last=Stevens |first=Simon |date=2019-11-01 |title=The Turn to Sabotage by The Congress Movement in South Africa |journal=Past & Present |issue=245 |pages=221–255 |doi=10.1093/pastj/gtz030 |issn=0031-2746 |doi-access=free |hdl=1814/75043 |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref name="Ellis-1991"/>

In the first half of the 1960s, MK was preoccupied with a campaign of [[sabotage]] attacks, especially bombings of unoccupied government installations.<ref name="Stevens-2019" /> As the ANC reduced its presence inside South Africa, however, MK cadres were increasingly confined to training camps in Tanzania and neighbouring countries – with such exceptions as the [[Operation Nickel|Wankie Campaign]], a momentous military failure.<ref name="Houston-2004">{{Cite book |last1=Houston |first1=Gregory |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273455254 |title=The Road to Democracy in South Africa |last2=Ralinala |first2=Rendani Moses |publisher=Zebra Press |year=2004 |volume=1 |pages=435–492 |chapter=The Wankie and Sipolilo Campaigns |access-date=27 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231044547/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273455254_The_Wankie_and_Sipolilo_Campaigns |archive-date=31 December 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 1969, Tambo was compelled to call the landmark [[Morogoro Conference]] to address the grievances of the rank-and-file, articulated by [[Chris Hani]] in a memorandum which depicted MK's leadership as corrupt and complacent.<ref name="Macmillan-2009">{{Cite journal |last=Macmillan |first=Hugh |date=2009-09-01 |title=After Morogoro: the continuing crisis in the African National Congress (of South Africa) in Zambia, 1969–1971 |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/02533950903076386 |url-status=live |journal=Social Dynamics |volume=35 |issue=2 |pages=295–311 |doi=10.1080/02533950903076386 |issn=0253-3952 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231044529/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02533950903076386 |archive-date=31 December 2021 |access-date=26 December 2021 |s2cid=143455223|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Although MK's malaise persisted into the 1970s, conditions for armed struggle soon improved considerably, especially after the [[Soweto uprising]] of 1976 in South Africa saw thousands of students – inspired by [[Black Consciousness Movement|Black Consciousness]] ideas – cross the borders to seek military training.<ref name="Ellis-1994">{{Cite journal |last=Ellis |first=Stephen |date=1994 |title=Mbokodo: Security in ANC Camps, 1961–1990 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/723845 |url-status=live |journal=African Affairs |volume=93 |issue=371 |pages=279–298 |doi=10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a098712 |issn=0001-9909 |jstor=723845 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227162526/https://www.jstor.org/stable/723845 |archive-date=27 December 2021 |access-date=27 December 2021|hdl=1887/9075 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> MK [[Guerrilla warfare|guerrilla]] activity inside South Africa increased steadily over this period, with one estimate recording an increase from 23 incidents in 1977 to 136 incidents in 1985.<ref name="Lodge-1987">{{Cite journal |last=Lodge |first=Tom |date=1987 |title=State of Exile: The African National Congress of South Africa, 1976–86 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3991845 |url-status=live |journal=Third World Quarterly |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=1,282–310 |doi=10.1080/01436598708419960 |issn=0143-6597 |jstor=3991845 |pmid=12268882 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227113732/https://www.jstor.org/stable/3991845 |archive-date=27 December 2021 |access-date=27 December 2021|url-access=subscription }}</ref> In the latter half of the 1980s, a number of South African civilians were killed in these attacks, a reversal of the ANC's earlier reluctance to incur civilian casualties.<ref name="Williams-2000">{{Cite journal |last=Williams |first=Rocky |date=2000 |title=The other armies: A brief historical overview of Umkhonto We Sizwe (MK), 1961–1994 |url=http://samilitaryhistory.org/vol115rw.html |url-status=live |journal=Military History Journal |volume=11 |issue=5 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181004182018/http://samilitaryhistory.org/vol115rw.html |archive-date=4 October 2018 |access-date=27 December 2021}}</ref><ref name="Lodge-1987" /> Fatal attacks included the 1983 [[Church Street, Pretoria bombing|Church Street bombing]], the 1985 [[Amanzimtoti bombing]], the 1986 [[Durban beach-front bombing|Magoo's Bar bombing]], and the 1987 [[Johannesburg Magistrate's Court bombing]]. Partly in retaliation, the [[South African Defence Force]] increasingly crossed the border to target ANC members and ANC bases, as in the 1981 [[Operation Beanbag|raid on Maputo]], 1983 [[Operation Skerwe|raid on Maputo]], and 1985 [[raid on Gaborone]].<ref name="Ellis-2013" />[[File:Oliver Tambo (1981).jpg|thumb|[[Oliver Tambo]], ANC president in exile from 1967 to 1991.]]
During this period, MK activities led the governments of [[Margaret Thatcher]] and [[Ronald Reagan]] to condemn the ANC as a terrorist organisation.<ref name="Waxman-2018">{{Cite magazine |last=Waxman |first=Olivia B. |date=2018-07-18 |title=The U.S. Government Had Nelson Mandela on Terrorist Watch Lists Until 2008. Here's Why |url=https://time.com/5338569/nelson-mandela-terror-list/ |url-status=live |magazine=Time |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227113735/https://time.com/5338569/nelson-mandela-terror-list/ |archive-date=27 December 2021 |access-date=2021-12-27}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=McSmith |first=Andy |date=2013-12-10 |title=Margaret Thatcher branded ANC 'terrorist' while urging Nelson Mandela's release |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/margaret-thatcher-branded-anc-terrorist-while-urging-nelson-mandela-s-release-8994191.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227113733/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/margaret-thatcher-branded-anc-terrorist-while-urging-nelson-mandela-s-release-8994191.html |archive-date=27 December 2021 |access-date=2021-12-27 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref> In fact, neither the ANC nor Mandela were removed from the U.S. terror watch list until 2008.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Windrem |first=Robert |date=2013-12-07 |title=US government considered Nelson Mandela a terrorist until 2008 |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/us-government-considered-nelson-mandela-terrorist-until-2008-flna2D11708787 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227113737/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/us-government-considered-nelson-mandela-terrorist-until-2008-flna2D11708787 |archive-date=27 December 2021 |access-date=2021-12-27 |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref> The animosity of Western regimes was partly explained by the [[Cold War]] context, and by the considerable amount of support – both financial and technical – that the ANC received from the [[Soviet Union]].<ref name="Shubin-1996">{{Cite journal |last=Shubin |first=Vladimir |date=1996 |title=The Soviet Union/Russian Federation's Relations with South Africa, with Special Reference to the Period since 1980 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/723723 |url-status=live |journal=African Affairs |volume=95 |issue=378 |pages=5–30 |doi=10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a007713 |issn=0001-9909 |jstor=723723 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227162524/https://www.jstor.org/stable/723723 |archive-date=27 December 2021 |access-date=27 December 2021|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name="Ellis-2013" />

=== Negotiations to end apartheid ===
{{Main|Negotiations to end apartheid in South Africa}}
From the mid-1980s, as international and internal opposition to apartheid mounted, elements of the ANC began to test the prospects for a [[Negotiations to end apartheid in South Africa|negotiated settlement]] with the South African government, although the prudence of abandoning armed struggle was an extremely controversial topic within the organisation.<ref name="Ellis-2013"/> Following preliminary contact between the ANC and representatives of the state, business, and civil society,<ref name="Lodge-1987" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Brits |first=J. P. |date=2008 |title=Thabo Mbeki and the Afrikaners, 1986–2004 |url=http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S0018-229X2008000200004&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en |url-status=live |journal=Historia |volume=53 |issue=2 |pages=33–69 |issn=0018-229X |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227161356/http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S0018-229X2008000200004&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en |archive-date=27 December 2021 |access-date=27 December 2021}}</ref> President [[F. W. de Klerk]] announced in February 1990 that the government would unban the ANC and other banned political organisations, and that Mandela would be released from prison.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Ottaway |first1=David |date=1990-02-03 |title=S. Africa Lifts Ban on ANC, Other Groups |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/s_africa/stories/anc020390.htm |access-date=1 July 2016}}</ref> Some ANC leaders returned to South Africa from exile for so-called "talks about talks", which led in 1990 and 1991 to a series of bilateral accords with the government establishing a mutual commitment to negotiations. Importantly, the [[Negotiations to end apartheid in South Africa#Pretoria Minute: August 1990|Pretoria Minute]] of August 1990 included a commitment by the ANC to unilaterally suspend its armed struggle.<ref name="Simpson-2009">{{Cite journal |last=Simpson |first=Thula |date=2009 |title=Toyi-Toyi-ing to Freedom: The Endgame in the ANCs Armed Struggle, 1989–1990 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40283245 |journal=Journal of Southern African Studies |volume=35 |issue=2 |pages=507–521 |doi=10.1080/03057070902920015 |jstor=40283245 |hdl=2263/14707 |s2cid=145785746 |issn=0305-7070|hdl-access=free }}</ref> This made possible the multi-party [[Negotiations to end apartheid in South Africa|Convention for a Democratic South Africa]] and later the Multi-Party Negotiating Forum, in which the ANC was regarded as the main representative of the interests of the anti-apartheid movement.

However, ongoing [[political violence]], which the ANC attributed to a state-sponsored [[Third Force (South Africa)|third force]], led to recurrent tensions. Most dramatically, after the [[Boipatong massacre]] of June 1992, the ANC announced that it was withdrawing from negotiations indefinitely.<ref name="Keller-1992">{{Cite news |last=Keller |first=Bill |date=1992-06-24 |title=Mandela, Stunned by Massacre, Pulls Out of Talks on Black Rule |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/06/24/world/mandela-stunned-by-massacre-pulls-out-of-talks-on-black-rule.html |access-date=2022-07-23 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> It faced further casualties in the [[Bisho massacre]], the [[Shell House massacre]], and in other clashes with state forces and supporters of the [[Inkatha Freedom Party]] (IFP).<ref name="Van Baalen-2014">{{Cite journal |last=Van Baalen |first=Sebastian |date=2014 |title=The Microdynamics of Conflict Escalation : The Case of ANC-IFP Fighting in South Africa in 1990 |url=http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-324310 |url-status=live |journal=Pax et Bellum Journal |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=14–20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231044542/http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1109559&dswid=4294 |archive-date=31 December 2021 |access-date=28 December 2021}}</ref> However, once negotiations resumed, they resulted in November 1993 in an [[Interim Constitution (South Africa)|interim Constitution]], which governed South Africa's [[1994 South African general election|first democratic elections]] on 27 April 1994. In the elections, the ANC won an overwhelming 62.65% majority of the vote.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2008-06-28 |title=Elections '94 |url=http://www.elections.org.za/Elections94.asp |access-date=2022-07-23 |website=Independent Electoral Commission|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080628132254/http://www.elections.org.za/Elections94.asp |archive-date=28 June 2008 }}</ref> Mandela was elected [[President of South Africa|president]] and formed a coalition [[Cabinet of Nelson Mandela|Government of National Unity]], which, under the provisions of the interim Constitution, also included the National Party and IFP.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Drogin |first=Bob |date=1994-05-07 |title=Ex-Guerrillas, Exiles Named to Mandela Cabinet |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-05-07-mn-54878-story.html |access-date=2022-07-23 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> The ANC has controlled the [[Government of South Africa|national government]] since then.

=== Breakaways ===
In the post-apartheid era, several significant breakaway groups have been formed by former ANC members. The first is the [[Congress of the People (South African political party)|Congress of the People]], founded by [[Mosiuoa Lekota]] in 2008 in the aftermath of the [[52nd National Conference of the African National Congress|Polokwane elective conference]], when the ANC declined to re-elect [[Thabo Mbeki]] as its president and instead compelled his resignation from the national presidency. The second breakaway is the [[Economic Freedom Fighters]], founded in 2013 after youth leader [[Julius Malema]] was expelled from the ANC. Before these, the most important split in the ANC's history occurred in 1959, when [[Robert Sobukwe]] led a splinter faction of [[African nationalism|African nationalists]] to the new [[Pan Africanist Congress of Azania|Pan Africanist Congress]].

[[uMkhonto weSizwe (political party)|uMkhonto weSizwe]] rose to prominence in December 2023, when former president [[Jacob Zuma]] announced that, while planning to remain a lifelong member of the ANC, he would not be campaigning for the ANC in the [[2024 South African general election]], and would instead be voting for MK.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.polity.org.za/article/the-battle-for-the-soul-of-umkhonto-wesizwe-2023-12-18|title="The battle for the soul of uMkhonto weSizwe"}}</ref> In July 2024, Jacob Zuma was expelled from the ANC, because of campaigning for a rival party ([[UMkhonto weSizwe (political party)|MK party]]) in the 29 May general election.<ref>{{cite news |title=South Africa's ex-President Jacob Zuma expelled from ANC |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjr4kllkpwxo |work=www.bbc.com}}</ref>

== Current structure and composition ==
[[File:Cyril Ramaphosa e Michel Temer (cropped).jpg|thumb|205x205px|[[Cyril Ramaphosa]] was elected ANC president at the [[54th National Conference of the African National Congress|2017 conference]].]]

=== Leadership ===
{{See also|National Conference of the African National Congress|National Executive Committee of the African National Congress}}Under the ANC constitution, every member of the ANC belongs to a local branch, and branch members select the organisation's policies and leaders.<ref name="ANC-2017a">{{Cite web |date=2017 |title=African National Congress Constitution, as amended and adopted by the 54th National Conference |url=https://www.anc1912.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/ANC-Constitution-2017.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.anc1912.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/ANC-Constitution-2017.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |website=African National Congress}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Darracq |first=V. |date=2008-08-18 |title=The African National Congress (ANC) organization at the grassroots |url=https://academic.oup.com/afraf/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/afraf/adn059 |journal=African Affairs |language=en |volume=107 |issue=429 |pages=589–609 |doi=10.1093/afraf/adn059 |issn=0001-9909|url-access=subscription }}</ref> They do so primarily by electing delegates to the [[National Conference of the African National Congress|National Conference]], which is currently convened every five years. Between conferences, the organisation is led by its 86-member [[National Executive Committee of the African National Congress|National Executive Committee]], which is elected at each conference. The most senior members of the National Executive Committee are the so-called Top Six officials, the ANC president primary among them. A symmetrical process occurs at the subnational levels: each of the nine [[Provincial Executive Committees of the African National Congress|provincial executive committees]] and regional executive committees are elected at provincial and regional elective conferences respectively, also attended by branch delegates; and branch officials are elected at branch general meetings.<ref name="ANC-2017a" />

=== Leagues ===
The ANC has three leagues: the [[African National Congress Women's League|Women's League]], the [[African National Congress Youth League|Youth League]] and the [[African National Congress Veterans' League|Veterans' League]]. Under the ANC constitution, the leagues are autonomous bodies with the scope to devise their own constitutions and policies; for the purpose of national conferences, they are treated somewhat like provinces, with voting delegates and the power to nominate leadership candidates.<ref name="ANC-2017a" />

=== Tripartite Alliance ===
{{main|Tripartite Alliance}}

The ANC is recognised as the leader of a three-way alliance, known as the [[Tripartite Alliance]], with the SACP and [[Congress of South African Trade Unions]] (COSATU). The alliance was formalised in mid-1990, after the ANC was unbanned, but has deeper historical roots: the SACP had worked closely with the ANC in exile, and COSATU had aligned itself with the Freedom Charter and Congress Alliance in 1987.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Twala |first1=Chitja |last2=Kompi |first2=Buti |date=2012-06-01 |title=The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the Tripartite Alliance: a marriage of (in)convenience? |url=https://journals.co.za/doi/10.10520/EJC133152 |url-status=live |journal=Journal for Contemporary History |volume=37 |issue=1 |pages=171–190 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231044535/https://journals.co.za/doi/10.10520/EJC133152 |archive-date=31 December 2021 |access-date=28 December 2021 |hdl=10520/EJC133152}}</ref> The membership and leadership of the three organisations has traditionally overlapped significantly.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Buhlungu |first1=Sakhela |last2=Ellis |first2=Stephen |date=2013-01-01 |title=The trade union movement and the Tripartite Alliance: a tangled history |url=https://brill.com/view/book/edcoll/9789004214606/B9789004214606-s013.xml |url-status=live |journal=Cosatu's Contested Legacy |language=EN |pages=259–282 |doi=10.1163/9789004214606_013 |isbn=9789004214606 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211228162802/https://brill.com/view/book/edcoll/9789004214606/B9789004214606-s013.xml |archive-date=28 December 2021 |access-date=28 December 2021|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The alliance constitutes a ''de facto'' electoral coalition: the SACP and COSATU do not contest in government elections, but field candidates through the ANC, hold senior positions in the ANC, and influence party policy. However, the SACP, in particular, has frequently threatened to field its own candidates,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bandile |first=Dineo |date=2017-07-15 |title=SACP resolves to contest state power independently of the ANC |url=https://mg.co.za/article/2017-07-15-sacp-resolves-to-contest-state-power/ |access-date=2022-07-25 |website=The Mail & Guardian |language=en-ZA}}</ref> and in 2017 it did so for the first time, running against the ANC in [[by-election]]s in the [[Metsimaholo Local Municipality|Metsimaholo municipality, Free State]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mailovich |first=Claudi |date=2017-11-29 |title=SACP breaks alliance ranks in local election |url=https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/politics/2017-11-29-sacp-breaks-alliance-ranks-in-local-election/ |access-date=2022-07-25 |website=Business Day |language=en-ZA}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-12-21 |title=SACP governs its first municipality |url=https://www.news24.com/News24/sacp-governs-its-first-municipality-20171221 |access-date=2022-07-25 |website=News24 |language=en-US}}</ref>[[File:Old ANC logo 1990.svg|thumb|203x203px|The logo of the ANC in 1990, since updated.]]

=== Electoral candidates ===
Under South Africa's closed-[[Party-list proportional representation|list proportional representation]] electoral system, parties have immense power in selecting candidates for legislative bodies. The ANC's internal [[Preselection|candidate selection]] process is overseen by so-called "list committees" and tends to involve a degree of broad democratic participation, especially at the local level, where ANC branches vote to nominate candidates for the local government elections.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Mac Giollabhui |first=Shane |date=2018-08-18 |title=Battleground: candidate selection and violence in Africa's dominant political parties |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13510347.2018.1451841 |journal=Democratization |language=en |volume=25 |issue=6 |pages=978–995 |doi=10.1080/13510347.2018.1451841 |s2cid=218523954 |issn=1351-0347}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Giollabhuí |first=Shane Mac |date=2013 |title=How things fall apart: Candidate selection and the cohesion of dominant parties in South Africa and Namibia |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1354068811407599 |journal=Party Politics |language=en |volume=19 |issue=4 |pages=577–600 |doi=10.1177/1354068811407599 |s2cid=145444345 |issn=1354-0688|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Between 2003 and 2008, the ANC also gained a significant number of members through the controversial [[floor crossing (South Africa)|floor crossing]] process, which occurred especially at the local level.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Booysen |first=Susan |date=2006 |title=The Will of the Parties Versus the Will of the People?: Defections, Elections and Alliances in South Africa |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1354068806068598 |journal=Party Politics |language=en |volume=12 |issue=6 |pages=727–746 |doi=10.1177/1354068806068598 |s2cid=145011059 |issn=1354-0688|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=McLaughlin |first=Eric |date=2012 |title=Electoral regimes and party-switching: Floor-crossing in South Africa's local legislatures |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1354068810389610 |journal=Party Politics |language=en |volume=18 |issue=4 |pages=563–579 |doi=10.1177/1354068810389610 |s2cid=143948206 |issn=1354-0688|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The leaders of the [[Executive (government)|executive]] in each sphere of government – the [[President of South Africa|president]], the provincial [[Premier (South Africa)|premiers]], and the mayors – are [[Indirect election|indirectly elected]] after each election. In practice, the selection of ANC candidates for these positions is highly centralised, with the ANC caucus voting together to elect a pre-decided candidate. Although the ANC does not always announce whom its caucuses intend to elect,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Myburgh |first=James |date=2009-03-06 |title=The ANC's secret premier candidates |url=https://www.politicsweb.co.za/news-and-analysis/the-ancs-secret-premier-candidates |access-date=2022-07-25 |website=PoliticsWeb |language=en}}</ref> the [[National Assembly of South Africa|National Assembly]] has thus far always elected the ANC president as the national president.

=== Cadre deployment ===
The ANC has adhered to a formal policy of [[Cadre (politics)|cadre]] deployment since 1985.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1999 |title=Cadre Policy and Deployment Strategy |url=https://www.anc1912.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Umrabulo-Issue-No.6-1st-Quarter-1999.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.anc1912.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Umrabulo-Issue-No.6-1st-Quarter-1999.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |journal=Umrabulo |volume=6}}</ref> In the post-apartheid era, the policy includes but is not exhausted by selection of candidates for elections and government positions: it also entails that the central organisation "deploys" ANC members to various other strategic positions in the party, state, and economy.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Twala |first=Chitja |date=2014 |title=The African National Congress (ANC) and the Cadre Deployment Policy in the Postapartheid South Africa: A Product of Democratic Centralisation or a Recipe for a Constitutional Crisis? |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09718923.2014.11893352 |journal=Journal of Social Sciences |language=en |volume=41 |issue=2 |pages=159–165 |doi=10.1080/09718923.2014.11893352 |s2cid=73526447 |issn=0971-8923|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Swanepoel |first=Cornelis F. |date=2021-12-14 |title=The slippery slope to State capture: cadre deployment as an enabler of corruption and a contributor to blurred party-State lines |journal=Law, Democracy and Development |volume=25 |pages=1–23 |doi=10.17159/2077-4907/2021/ldd.v25.15|s2cid=245698431 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

==Ideology and policies==
[[File:Nelson Mandela, 2000.jpg|left|thumb|190x190px|As ANC president (1991–97), [[Nelson Mandela]] saw the ANC expand and informally absorb other anti-apartheid groups.]]

The ANC prides itself on being a [[Broad church#In politics|broad church]],<ref name="Duarte-2018">{{Cite web |last=Duarte |first=Jessie |author-link=Jessie Duarte |date=2018-10-30 |title=ANC policy remains the broad church for all South Africans |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2018-10-31-anc-policy-remains-the-broad-church-for-all-south-africans/ |access-date=2022-07-26 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}}</ref> and, like many [[Dominant-party system|dominant parties]], resembles a [[Big tent|catch-all party]], accommodating a range of ideological tendencies.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Southall |first=Roger |date=2005 |title=The 'Dominant Party Debate' in South Africa |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40175055 |journal=Africa Spectrum |volume=40 |issue=1 |pages=61–82 |jstor=40175055 |issn=0002-0397}}</ref><ref name="Butler-2005">{{Cite journal |last=Butler |first=Anthony |date=2005 |title=How Democratic Is the African National Congress? |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25065043 |journal=Journal of Southern African Studies |volume=31 |issue=4 |pages=719–736 |doi=10.1080/03057070500370472 |jstor=25065043 |s2cid=144481513 |issn=0305-7070|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name="Darracq-2008">{{Cite journal |last=Darracq |first=Vincent |date=2008 |title=Being a 'Movement of the People' and a Governing Party: Study of the African National Congress Mass Character |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40283147 |journal=Journal of Southern African Studies |volume=34 |issue=2 |pages=429–449 |doi=10.1080/03057070802038090 |jstor=40283147 |s2cid=143326762 |issn=0305-7070|url-access=subscription }}</ref> As Mandela told ''[[The Washington Post]]'' in 1990:

<blockquote>The ANC has never been a political party. It was formed as a parliament of the African people. Right from the start, up to now, the ANC is a coalition, if you want, of people of various political affiliations. Some will support [[Free market|free enterprise]], others [[socialism]]. Some are [[Conservatism|conservatives]], others are [[Liberalism|liberals]]. We are united solely by our determination to oppose [[Oppression|racial oppression]]. That is the only thing that unites us. There is no question of ideology as far as the odyssey of the ANC is concerned, because any question approaching ideology would split the organization from top to bottom. Because we have no connection whatsoever except at this one, of our determination to dismantle apartheid.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1990-06-27 |title='We'll never fold our arms in the face of the evil of... apartheid' |language=en-US |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1990/06/27/well-never-fold-our-arms-in-the-face-of-the-evil-of-apartheid/0cb37035-5254-4d79-8bb7-e1b2beaf7bd6/ |access-date=2022-07-26 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> </blockquote>

The post-apartheid ANC continues to identify itself foremost as a [[liberation movement]], pursuing "the complete liberation of the country from all forms of discrimination and national oppression".<ref name="ANC-2017a" /> It also continues to claim the Freedom Charter of 1955 as "the basic policy document of the ANC".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Who We Are |url=https://www.anc1912.org.za/our-history/ |access-date=2022-07-25 |publisher=African National Congress}}</ref><ref name="ANC-2017a" /> However, as NEC member [[Jeremy Cronin]] noted in 2007, the various broad principles of the Freedom Charter have been given different interpretations, and emphasised to differing extents, by different groups within the organisation.<ref name="Darracq-2008" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Suttner |first=Raymond |author-link=Raymond Suttner |date=2015 |title=The Freedom Charter @ 60: Rethinking its democratic qualities |journal=Historia |volume=60 |issue=2 |pages=1–23 |doi=10.17159/2309-8392/2015/V60N2A1 |doi-access= |s2cid= 148443043}}</ref> Nonetheless, some basic commonalities are visible in the policy and ideological preferences of the organisation's mainstream.

=== Non-racialism ===
{{Main|Non-racialism}}

The ANC is committed to the ideal of [[non-racialism]] and to opposing "any form of racial, tribalistic or ethnic exclusivism or chauvinism".<ref name="ANC-2017a" /><ref name="Butler-2005" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ndebele |first=Nhlanhla |date=2002-11-01 |title=The African National Congress and the policy of non-racialism: A study of the membership issue |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/0258934022000027763 |journal=Politikon |volume=29 |issue=2 |pages=133–146 |doi=10.1080/0258934022000027763 |s2cid=154036222 |issn=0258-9346|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

=== National Democratic Revolution ===
The 1969 [[Morogoro Conference]] committed the ANC to a "[[National democratic state#National democratic revolution|national democratic revolution]] [which] – destroying the existing social and economic relationship – will bring with it a correction of the historical injustices perpetrated against the indigenous majority and thus lay the basis for a new – and deeper [[Proletarian internationalism|internationalist]] – approach".<ref>{{Cite web |date=1969-04-26 |title=Report on the Strategy and Tactics of the African National Congress |url=https://renewal.anc1912.org.za/assets/Documents/Morogoro%20Conference%201969%20Strategy%20&%20Tactics%20Report.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://renewal.anc1912.org.za/assets/Documents/Morogoro%20Conference%201969%20Strategy%20&%20Tactics%20Report.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |access-date=2022-07-25 |website=African National Congress}}</ref> For the movement's intellectuals, the concept of the National Democratic Revolution (NDR) was a means of reconciling the anti-apartheid and [[Decolonization|anti-colonial]] project with a second goal, that of establishing domestic and international socialism – the ANC is a member of the [[Socialist International]],<ref name="socialistinternational" /> and its close partner the SACP traditionally conceives itself as a [[Vanguardism|vanguard party]].<ref name="Butler-2005" /> Specifically, and as implied by the 1969 document, NDR doctrine entails that the transformation of the domestic political system (national struggle, in [[Joe Slovo]]'s phrase) is a precondition for a socialist revolution (class struggle).<ref name="Butler-2005" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Slovo |first=Joe |date=1988 |title=The South African Working Class and the National Democratic Revolution |url=https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/The%20South%20African%20Working%20Class%20and%20the%20National%20Democratic%20Revolution.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/The%20South%20African%20Working%20Class%20and%20the%20National%20Democratic%20Revolution.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |journal=Umsebenzi Discussion Pamphlet |publisher=South African Communist Party}}</ref> The concept remained important to ANC intellectuals and strategists after the end of apartheid.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Netshitenzhe |first=Joel |title=Understanding the tasks of the moment |url=http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/pubs/umrabulo/umrabulo25/tasks.html |url-status=dead |journal=Umrabulo |volume=25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080622025249/http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/pubs/umrabulo/umrabulo25/tasks.html |archive-date=22 June 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Marwala |first=T |title=The anatomy of capital and the national democratic revolution |url=http://www.anc.org.za/show.php?id=2844 |url-status=dead |journal=Umrabulo |volume=29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111018065656/http://www.anc.org.za/show.php?id=2844 |archive-date=18 October 2011}}</ref> Indeed, the pursuit of the NDR is one of the primary objectives of the ANC as set out in its constitution.<ref name="ANC-2017a" /> As with the Freedom Charter, the ambiguity of the NDR has allowed it to bear varying interpretations. For example, whereas SACP theorists tend to emphasise the anti-capitalist character of the NDR, some ANC policymakers have construed it as implying the empowerment of the black majority even within a [[Capitalism|market-capitalist]] scheme.<ref name="Butler-2005" />

=== Economic interventionism ===
{{Quote box
| quote = We must develop the capacity of government for strategic intervention in social and economic development. We must increase the capacity of the public sector to deliver improved and extended public services to all the people of South Africa.
| author = – 1994 [[Reconstruction and Development Programme]]
| align = right
| width = 18%
}}

Since 1994, consecutive ANC governments have held a strong preference for a significant degree of [[Market intervention|state intervention in the economy]]. The ANC's first comprehensive articulation of its post-apartheid economic policy framework was set out in the [[Reconstruction and Development Programme]] (RDP) document of 1994, which became its electoral manifesto and also, under the same name, the flagship policy of [[Cabinet of Nelson Mandela|Nelson Mandela's government]]. The RDP aimed both to redress [[Inequality in post-apartheid South Africa|the socioeconomic inequalities]] created by [[colonialism]] and apartheid, and to promote [[economic growth]] and [[Economic development|development]]; state intervention was judged a necessary step towards both goals.<ref name="ANC-1994">{{Cite web |date=1994 |title=The Reconstruction and Development Programme: A Policy Framework |url=https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/the_reconstruction_and_development_programm_1994.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/the_reconstruction_and_development_programm_1994.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |website=African National Congress}}</ref> Specifically, the state was to intervene in the economy through three primary channels: [[Land reform in South Africa|a land reform programme]]; a degree of [[economic planning]], through industrial and trade policy; and state investments in infrastructure and the provision of basic services, including health and education.<ref name="ANC-1994" /><ref name="Seekings-2015">{{Cite journal |last=Seekings |first=Jeremy |date=2015 |title=The 'Developmental' and 'Welfare' State in South Africa: Lessons for the Southern African Region |url=http://www.cssr.uct.ac.za/sites/default/files/image_tool/images/256/files/WP%20358.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.cssr.uct.ac.za/sites/default/files/image_tool/images/256/files/WP%20358.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |journal=Centre for Social Science Research Working Paper |issue=358}}</ref> Although the RDP was abandoned in 1996, these three channels of state economic intervention have remained mainstays of subsequent ANC policy frameworks.

==== Neoliberal turn ====
{{See also|Thabo Mbeki#Economic policy}}

In 1996, Mandela's government replaced the RDP with the [[Social welfare programmes in South Africa#Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR)|Growth Employment and Redistribution]] (GEAR) programme, which was maintained under President [[Thabo Mbeki]], Mandela's successor. GEAR has been characterised as a [[Neoliberalism|neoliberal]] policy,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Adelzadeh |first1=Asghar |date=1996 |title=From the RDP to GEAR: The Gradual embracing of Neo-liberalism in economic policy |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237782399 |journal=Occasional Paper Series No. 3 |location=Johannesburg |publisher=National Institute for Economic Policy |access-date=15 September 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Narsiah |first1=Sagie |date=2002 |title=Neoliberalism and privatisation in South Africa |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023/A:1026022903276 |journal=GeoJournal |volume=57 |issue=1–2 |pages=3–13 |doi=10.1023/A:1026022903276 |bibcode=2002GeoJo..57....3N |access-date=15 September 2021 |s2cid=144352281|url-access=subscription }}</ref> and it was disowned by both COSATU and the SACP.<ref>{{cite web |last=Ngonyama |first=Percy |date=16 October 2006 |title=The ideological differences within the Tripartite Alliance: What now for the left? |url=http://southafrica.indymedia.org/news/2006/10/11418.php |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080624003332/http://southafrica.indymedia.org/news/2006/10/11418.php |archive-date=24 June 2008 |website=Independent Media Centre}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Southall |first1=Roger J. |last2=Wood |first2=Geoffrey |date=1999 |title=COSATU, the ANC and the Election: Whither the Alliance? |url=https://www.africabib.org/rec.php?RID=189667516 |journal=Transformation: Critical Perspectives on Southern Africa |language=en |issue=38 |pages=68–81}}</ref> While some analysts viewed Mbeki's economic policy as undertaking the uncomfortable macroeconomic adjustments necessary for long-term growth,<ref name="Butler-2005" /> others – notably [[Patrick Bond]] – viewed it as a reflection of the ANC's failure to implement genuinely radical transformation after 1994.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bond |first=Patrick |title=The Elite Transition: From Apartheid to Neoliberalism in South Africa |date=2000 |publisher=Pluto Press |location=London |page=53}}</ref> Debate about ANC commitment to [[Redistribution of income and wealth|redistribution]] on a socialist scale has continued: in 2013, the country's largest trade union, the [[National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa]], withdrew its support for the ANC on the basis that "the working class cannot any longer see the ANC or the SACP as its class allies in any meaningful sense".<ref name="NUMSA">{{cite news |last=Polgreen |first=Lydia |date=20 December 2013 |title=South Africa's Biggest Trade Union Pulls Its Support for A.N.C. |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/21/world/africa/south-africas-biggest-union-pulls-support-for-anc.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/21/world/africa/south-africas-biggest-union-pulls-support-for-anc.html |archive-date=2022-01-01}}{{cbignore}}</ref> It is evident, however, that the ANC never embraced [[Market economy|free-market capitalism]], and continued to favour a [[mixed economy]]: even as the debate over GEAR raged, the ANC declared itself (in 2004) a [[Social democracy|social-democratic]] party,<ref>The Mail & Guardian A-Z of South African Politics by Barbara Ludman, Paul Stober, and Ferial Haffagee</ref> and it was at that time presiding over phenomenal expansions of its [[Black Economic Empowerment|black economic empowerment]] programme and the [[Social welfare programmes in South Africa|system of social grants]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Seekings |first=Jeremy |title=One Hundred Years of Social Protection: The Changing Social Question in Brazil, India, China, and South Africa |date=2021 |work= |pages=263–300 |editor-last=Leisering |editor-first=Lutz |chapter=(Re)formulating the Social Question in Post-apartheid South Africa: Zola Skweyiya, Dignity, Development and the Welfare State |series=Global Dynamics of Social Policy |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-54959-6_8 |isbn=978-3-030-54959-6 |s2cid=230608172 |doi-access=free }}.</ref><ref name="Bundy-2016">{{Cite journal |last=Bundy |first=Colin |author-link=Colin Bundy |date=2016-09-06 |title=The ANC and Social Security: The Good, the Bad and the Unacknowledged |url=http://www.povertyandinequality.uct.ac.za/sites/default/files/image_tool/images/95/2016/Seminars/ANC%20and%20Social%20Security.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.povertyandinequality.uct.ac.za/sites/default/files/image_tool/images/95/2016/Seminars/ANC%20and%20Social%20Security.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |journal=Poverty & Inequality Initiative |publisher=University of Cape Town}}</ref>

==== Developmental state ====
As its name suggests, the RDP emphasised state-led development – that is, a [[developmental state]] – which the ANC has typically been cautious, at least in its rhetoric, to distinguish from the neighbouring concept of a [[welfare state]].<ref name="ANC-2007">{{Cite web |date=2007-12-20 |title=52nd National Conference: Resolutions |url=https://www.anc1912.org.za/resolutions-2/ |access-date=2022-07-26 |website=African National Congress |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="Bundy-2016" /><ref name="Seekings-2015" /> In the mid-2000s, during Mbeki's second term, the notion of a developmental state was revived in South African political discourse when the national economy worsened;<ref name="Seekings-2015" /> and the [[53rd National Conference of the African National Congress|2007 National Conference]] whole-heartedly endorsed developmentalism in its policy resolutions, calling for a state "at the centre of a mixed economy... which leads and guides that economy and which intervenes in the interest of the people as a whole".<ref name="ANC-2007" /> The proposed developmental state was also central to the ANC's campaign in the [[2009 South African general election|2009 elections]],<ref name="Seekings-2015" /> and it remains a central pillar of the policy of the current government, which seeks to build a "capable and developmental" state.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ramaphosa |first=Cyril |author-link=Cyril Ramaphosa |date=2022-02-14 |title=To grow our economy we need both a developmental state AND vibrant private sector |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/columnists/cyrilramaphosa/cyril-ramaphosa-to-grow-our-economy-we-need-both-a-developmental-state-and-vibrant-private-sector-20220214 |access-date=2022-07-26 |website=News24 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Khambule |first=Isaac |date=2021 |title=Capturing South Africa's developmental state: State-society relations and responses to state capture |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pad.1912 |journal=Public Administration and Development |language=en |volume=41 |issue=4 |pages=169–179 |doi=10.1002/pad.1912 |s2cid=236273471 |issn=0271-2075|url-access=subscription }}</ref> In this regard, ANC politicians often cite China as an aspirational example.<ref name="Duarte-2018" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-08-23 |title=My Chinese dream: ANC brass put ideas to work |url=https://mg.co.za/article/2015-08-23-my-chinese-dream-anc-brass-put-ideas-to-work/ |access-date=2022-07-26 |website=The Mail & Guardian |language=en-ZA}}</ref> A discussion document ahead of the ANC's 2015 National General Council proposed that:

<blockquote>[[Chinese economic reform|China['s] economic development]] trajectory remains a leading example of the triumph of humanity over adversity. The exemplary role of the collective leadership of the [[Chinese Communist Party|Communist Party of China]] in this regard should be a guiding lodestar of our own struggle.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2015 |title=International Relations: A Better Africa In A Better And Just World |url=http://www.anc.org.za/docs/umrabulo/2015/ngc_disc_docsy.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150827210636/http://www.anc.org.za/docs/umrabulo/2015/ngc_disc_docsy.pdf |archive-date=27 August 2015 |access-date=27 August 2015 |website=Umrabulo |page=161}}</ref> </blockquote>

==== Radical economic transformation ====
Towards the end of [[Jacob Zuma]]'s presidency, an ANC faction aligned to Zuma pioneered a new policy platform referred to as radical economic transformation (RET). Zuma announced the new focus on RET during his February 2017 [[State of the Nation Address (South Africa)|State of the Nation]] address,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Merten |first=Marianne |date=2017-06-29 |title=ANC policy, radical economic transformation and ideological proxy battles for control |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2017-06-29-analysis-anc-policy-radical-economic-transformation-and-ideological-proxy-battles-for-control/ |access-date=2022-01-12 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}}</ref> and later that year, explaining that it had been adopted as ANC policy and therefore as government policy, defined it as entailing "fundamental change in the structures, systems, institutions and patterns of ownership and control of the economy, in favour of all South Africans, especially the poor".<ref name="Paton-2017">{{Cite web |last=Paton |first=Carol |date=2017-12-07 |title=Foreign investors in energy sector will have to partner with locals, Zuma says |url=https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/2017-12-07-foreign-investors-in-energy-sector-will-have-to-partner-with-locals-zuma-says/ |access-date=2022-01-12 |website=Business Day |language=en-ZA}}</ref> Arguments for RET were closely associated with the rhetorical concept of [[white monopoly capital]].<ref name="Rudin-2017">{{Cite web |last=Rudin |first=Jeff |date=2017-04-25 |title=Zuma's plan for radical economic transformation is just BEE on steroids |url=https://mg.co.za/article/2017-04-25-zumas-plan-for-radical-economic-transformation-is-just-bee-on-steriods/ |access-date=2022-01-12 |website=[[Mail & Guardian]] |language=en-ZA}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Desai |first=Ashwin |date=2018-10-02 |title=The Zuma moment: between tender-based capitalists and radical economic transformation |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/02589001.2018.1522424 |journal=Journal of Contemporary African Studies |volume=36 |issue=4 |pages=499–513 |doi=10.1080/02589001.2018.1522424 |issn=0258-9001 |s2cid=158520517|url-access=subscription }}</ref> At the [[54th National Conference of the African National Congress|54th National Conference]] in 2017, the ANC endorsed a number of policy principles advocated by RET supporters, including their proposal to pursue [[Land reform in South Africa|land expropriation]] without compensation as a matter of national policy.<ref name="Cilliers-2019">{{Cite web |date=2019-06-06 |title=Zuma 'reminds' ANC what they 'resolved' about the Reserve Bank at Nasrec |url=https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/politics/2140317/zuma-reminds-anc-what-they-resolved-about-the-reserve-bank-at-nasrec/ |access-date=2021-12-07 |website=The Citizen |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Merten |first=Marianne |date=2021-05-31 |title=Expropriation without compensation: ANC & EFF toenadering on state land custodianship — it's all about the politics |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-05-31-expropriation-without-compensation-anc-eff-toenadering-on-state-land-custodianship-its-all-about-the-politics/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210531131823/https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-05-31-expropriation-without-compensation-anc-eff-toenadering-on-state-land-custodianship-its-all-about-the-politics/ |archive-date=2021-05-31 |access-date=2021-12-07 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Madia |first=Tshidi |date=2019-06-30 |title=ANC resolutions on Sarb, land and other matters will be my legacy – Ace Magashule on party policies |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/anc-resolutions-on-sarb-land-and-other-matters-will-be-my-legacy-ace-magashule-on-party-policies-20190630 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211207232523/https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/anc-resolutions-on-sarb-land-and-other-matters-will-be-my-legacy-ace-magashule-on-party-policies-20190630 |archive-date=2021-12-07 |access-date=2021-12-07 |website=News24 |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Foreign policy and relations ===
{{See also|Russian invasion of Ukraine|Israeli apartheid|Black-Palestinian solidarity}}

The ANC has long had close ties with China and the [[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP), with the CCP having supported ANC's struggle of apartheid since 1961.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-12-25 |title=How the political seeds of China's growing Africa ties were planted long ago |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3204290/how-political-seeds-chinas-growing-africa-ties-were-planted-long-ago |access-date=2023-03-15 |website=South China Morning Post |language=en}}</ref> In 2008, the two parties signed a memorandum of understanding to train ANC members in China.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sun |first=Yun |date=5 July 2016 |title=Political party training: China's ideological push in Africa? |url=https://www.brookings.edu/blog/africa-in-focus/2016/07/05/political-party-training-chinas-ideological-push-in-africa/ |access-date=2023-03-15 |website=Brookings |language=en-US}}</ref>

President Cyril Ramaphosa and the ANC have not condemned the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]], and have faced criticism from opposition parties,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ukraine: Someone needs to speak for SA |url=https://www.da.org.za/2022/05/ukraine-someone-needs-to-speak-for-sa |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=Democratic Alliance |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Tonder |first=Anthony van |date=2022-03-23 |title=SA Government's Position on Russia's Invasion of Ukraine Does Not Reflect the Views of ALL South Africans |url=https://www.actionsa.org.za/sa-governments-position-on-russias-invasion-of-ukraine-does-not-reflect-the-views-of-all-south-africans/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=ActionSA |language=en-ZA}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Makhafola |first=Getrude |date=2022-03-15 |title='Yes, I studied in Russia' – MPs heckle during debate on Russia war in Ukraine |url=https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/parliament/yes-i-studied-in-russia-mps-heckle-during-debate-on-russia-war-in-ukraine/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=The Citizen |language=en}}</ref> public commentators,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Feldman |first=Howard |title=Howard Feldman {{!}} Ukraine crisis: The ANC is standing on the wrong side of history |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/opinions/columnists/howardfeldman/howard-feldman-the-anc-is-standing-on-the-wrong-side-of-history-20220302 |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=News24 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Polakow-Suransky |first2=Eusebius|last2= McKaiser|first1= Sasha |title=South Africa's Self-Defeating Silence on Ukraine |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/03/18/south-africa-ukraine-russia-putin-ramaphosa-war-diplomacy-negotiation/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=Foreign Policy |date=18 March 2022 |language=en-US}}</ref> academics,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nathan |first=Laurie |title=Russia's war in Ukraine: how South Africa blew its chance as a credible mediator |url=http://theconversation.com/russias-war-in-ukraine-how-south-africa-blew-its-chance-as-a-credible-mediator-181101 |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=The Conversation |date=13 April 2022 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hamill |first=James |date=2022-03-16 |title=South Africa Has Clearly Chosen a Side on the War in Ukraine |url=https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/south-africa-has-chosen-a-side-on-ukraine-invasion-by-russia/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=World Politics Review |language=en-US}}</ref> civil society organisations,<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Mills |first1=Ray Hartley and Greg |date=2022-03-06 |title=WAR IN EUROPE OP-ED: Cries of pain and anguish — why the ANC is on the wrong side of history over Ukraine |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-03-06-cries-of-pain-and-anguish-why-the-anc-is-on-the-wrong-side-of-history-over-ukraine/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Fritz |first=Nicole |title=ANC mirrors Poland's Law & Justice party in flirting with tyranny |url=https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/opinion/columnists/2022-03-02-nicole-fritz-anc-mirrors-polands-law-justice-party-in-flirting-with-tyranny/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=BusinessLIVE |language=en-ZA}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Jurgens |first1=Richard |date=2022-07-04 |title=Russia in Ukraine: South Africa's unprincipled stance |url=https://gga.org/russia-in-ukraine-south-africas-unprincipled-stance/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=Good Governance Africa |language=en-US}}</ref> and former ANC members<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Jurgens |first1=Richard |date=2022-07-05 |title=Foreign Relations Op-Ed: ANC government's position on Ukraine invasion unprincipled, inconsistent with SA values |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-07-05-anc-governments-position-on-ukraine-invasion-unprincipled-inconsistent-with-sa-values/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}}</ref> due to this. The ANC youth wing has meanwhile condemned sanctions against Russia and denounced NATO's eastward expansion as "fascistic".<ref>{{cite news |date=7 March 2022 |title=German Embassy slaps down Russian claim its troops are fighting Nazism |language=en |work=The Independent |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/german-embassy-russia-ukraine-nazism-b2029643.html |access-date=17 April 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Fabricius |first1=Peter |date=6 March 2022 |title=INTERVIEW WITH US DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE: United States slaps down Ramaphosa's criticism of Biden's pre-war Russia diplomacy |language=en |work=Daily Maverick |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-03-06-united-states-slaps-down-ramaphosas-criticism-of-bidens-pre-war-russia-diplomacy/ |access-date=17 April 2022}}</ref> Officials representing the ANC Youth League acted as international observers for Russia's [[2022 annexation referendums in Russian-occupied Ukraine|staged referendum]] to annex Ukrainian territory claimed during the war.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Fabricius |first1=Peter |date=2022-09-25 |title=WAR IN EUROPE: ANC Youth League lends credibility to sham Moscow referendums in Ukraine |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-09-25-anc-youth-league-lends-credibility-to-sham-moscow-referendums-in-ukraine/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}}</ref> In February 2024 ANC Secretary-General [[Fikile Mbalula]] attend a "forum on combating Western neocolonialism"<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Masuabi |first=Queenin |date=2024-02-13 |title=Fikile Mbalula off to Moscow for forum on combating Western neocolonialism |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-02-14-fikile-mbalula-heads-to-moscow-for-forum-on-combating-western-neocolonialism/ |access-date=2024-02-17 |website=Daily Maverick |language=en}}</ref> hosted by Russia, thereby drawing further criticism for the party's perceived support for Russia's invasion.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Capa |first=Siyamtanda |title=Senior ANC delegation jets off to Moscow to join fight against 'new manifestation of colonialism' |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/politics/political-parties/senior-anc-delegation-jets-off-to-moscow-to-join-fight-against-new-manifestation-of-colonialism-20240214 |access-date=2024-02-17 |website=News24 |language=en-US}}</ref>

The ANC had received large donations from the Putin linked Russian oligarch [[Viktor Vekselberg]], whilst the party's investment arm, [[Chancellor House (company)|Chancellor House]], has a joint investment with Vekselberg in a South African manganese mine.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gerber |first=Jan |title=Lady R's cargo manifest is 'classified' claims ANC as opposition wants answers |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/lady-rs-cargo-manifest-is-classified-claims-anc-as-opposition-wants-answers-20230523 |access-date=2024-03-17 |website=News24 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-06-15 |title=South African ties to Russia shadow Ukraine peace mission |url=https://www.france24.com/en/africa/20230615-south-african-ties-to-russia-shadow-ukraine-peace-mission |access-date=2024-03-17 |website=France 24 |language=en}}</ref>

==Symbols and media==
[[File:Flag of the African National Congress.svg|thumb|The tricolour flag of the ANC.]]

=== Flag and logo ===
The logo of the ANC incorporates a spear and shield – symbolising the historical and ongoing struggle, armed and otherwise, against colonialism and racial oppression – and a wheel, which is borrowed from the 1955 Congress of the People campaign and therefore symbolises a united and non-racial movement for freedom and equality.<ref name="ANC-2017">{{cite web |title=The Logo, Colours and Flag of the African National Congress |url=http://www.anc.org.za/content/anc-logo-colours-and-flag |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170324052027/http://www.anc.org.za/content/anc-logo-colours-and-flag |archive-date=24 March 2017 |access-date=8 January 2017 |website=African National Congress |publisher= |quote=}}</ref> The logo uses the same colours as the ANC flag, which comprises three horizontal stripes of equal width in black, green and gold. The black symbolises the native people of South Africa; the green represents the land of South Africa; and the gold represents the country's mineral and other natural wealth.<ref name="ANC-2017" /> The black, green and gold [[Triband (flag)#Tricolour|tricolour]] also appeared on the flag of the [[KwaZulu]] [[bantustan]] and appears on the flag of the ANC's rival, the IFP; and all three colours appear in the post-apartheid [[Flag of South Africa|South African national flag]].

=== Publications ===
Since 1996, the ANC Department of Political Education has published the quarterly ''Umrabulo'' political discussion journal; and ''[[ANC Today]]'', a weekly online newsletter, was launched in 2001 to offset the alleged bias of the press.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fourie |first=Pieter J. |title=Media Studies Volume 2: Policy, Management and Media Representation |publisher=Juta and Company |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7021-7675-3 |edition=2nd |location=Cape Town |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=7531OTEpD_wC&pg=PA44 44]}}</ref> In addition, since 1972, it has been traditional for the ANC president to publish annually a so-called January 8 Statement: a reflective letter sent to members on 8 January, the anniversary of the organisation's founding.<ref>{{Cite web |title=ANC January 8th Statements |url=https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/anc-january-8th-statements |access-date=2022-07-25 |website=South African History Online}}</ref> In earlier years, the ANC published a range of [[Periodical literature|periodicals]], the most important of which was the monthly journal ''Sechaba'' (1967–1990), printed in the [[East Germany|German Democratic Republic]] and banned by the apartheid government.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1990 |title=Editorial: A Friend to Sechaba |url=https://www.sahistory.org.za/archive/sechaba-volume-24-number-12-december-1990 |journal=Sechaba |volume=24 |issue=12}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=1987-12-29 |title=Quoting the A.N.C. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/12/29/us/washington-talk-briefing-quoting-the-anc.html |access-date=2022-07-25 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The ANC's [[Radio Freedom]] also gained a wide audience during apartheid.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Uhlig |first=Mark A. |date=1986-10-12 |title=Inside the African National Congress |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/10/12/magazine/inside-the-african-national-congress.html |access-date=2022-07-25 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

=== Amandla ===
"[[Amandla (power)|Amandla ngawethu]]", or the [[Sotho language|Sotho]] variant "Matla ke arona", is a common rallying call at ANC meetings, roughly meaning "[[Power to the people (slogan)|power to the people]]".<ref name="ANC-2017" /> It is also common for meetings to sing so-called struggle songs, which were sung during anti-apartheid meetings and in MK camps. In the case of at least two of these songs – ''[[Dubul' ibhunu|Dubula ibhunu]]'' and ''[[Umshini wami]]'' – this has caused controversy in recent years.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Langa |first=Retha |date=2018-01-02 |title=A 'Counter-Monument' to the Liberation Struggle: The Deployment of Struggle Songs in Post-Apartheid South Africa |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/02582473.2018.1439523 |journal=South African Historical Journal |volume=70 |issue=1 |pages=215–233 |doi=10.1080/02582473.2018.1439523 |s2cid=149388558 |issn=0258-2473|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

== Criticism and controversy ==
The ANC has received criticism from both internal and external sources. Internally Mandela publicly criticized the party, following the conclusion of his presidency, for ignoring instances of corruption and mismanagement, whilst allowing for the growth of a culture of racial and ideological intolerance.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2001-03-03 |title=Mandela accuses ANC of racism and corruption |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/southafrica/1324909/Mandela-accuses-ANC-of-racism-and-corruption.html |access-date=2024-03-23 |website=The Telegraph |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2001-03-03 |title=Mandela says ANC racist and corrupt |url=https://www.independent.ie/world-news/africa/mandela-says-anc-racist-and-corrupt/26092140.html |access-date=2024-03-23 |website=Irish Independent |language=en}}</ref>

===Corruption controversies===
{{See also|Corruption in South Africa}}{{further|South African Arms Deal}}

The most prominent corruption case involving the ANC relates to a series of bribes paid to companies involved in the ongoing R55 billion [[South African Arms Deal|Arms Deal saga]], which [[Schabir Shaik trial|resulted in]] a long term jail sentence to then Deputy President [[Jacob Zuma]]'s legal adviser [[Schabir Shaik]]. Zuma, the former South African President, [[Jacob Zuma corruption charges|was charged with]] fraud, bribery and corruption in the Arms Deal, but the charges were subsequently withdrawn by the [[National Prosecuting Authority]] of South Africa due to their delay in prosecution.<ref>{{cite news |date=9 October 2008 |title=Opposition hails challenge to ANC rule |url=http://www.pretorianews.co.za/?fSectionId=&fArticleId=vn20081009055615571C284334}}</ref> The ANC has also been criticised for its subsequent abolition of the [[Scorpions (South Africa)|Scorpions]], the multidisciplinary agency that investigated and prosecuted organised crime and corruption, and was heavily involved in the investigation into Zuma and Shaik. [[Tony Yengeni]], in his position as chief whip of the ANC and head of the Parliaments defence committee has recently been named as being involved in bribing the German company [[ThyssenKrupp]] over the purchase of four corvettes for the SANDF.{{Citation needed|date=September 2022}}

Other corruption issues in the 2000s included the sexual misconduct and criminal charges of [[Beaufort West Local Municipality|Beaufort West]] municipal manager [[Truman Prince]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Bester |first=Ronel |date=5 May 2005 |title=Action against Prince 'a farce' |work=[[Die Burger]] |url=http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_1700232,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050507032712/http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0%2C%2C2-7-1442_1700232%2C00.html |archive-date=7 May 2005}}</ref> and the [[Oilgate]] scandal, in which millions of Rand in funds from a state-owned company were funnelled into ANC coffers.<ref>{{cite news |title=Special Report: Oilgate |work=Mail & Guardian |url=http://www.mg.co.za/specialreport.aspx?area=oilgate |url-status=dead |access-date=27 April 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070814083114/http://www.mg.co.za/specialreport.aspx?area=oilgate |archive-date=14 August 2007}}</ref>

The ANC has also been accused of using government and civil society to fight its political battles against opposition parties such as the [[Democratic Alliance (South Africa)|Democratic Alliance]]. The result has been a number of complaints and allegations that none of the political parties truly represent the interests of the poor.<ref>{{cite web |date=20 February 2008 |title=DA councillor's role in Delft is 'criminal' |url=http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=6&art_id=vn20080220113540685C199776 |work=Cape Argus}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=28 February 2008 |title=DA's Delft councillor denies claims |work=Cape Argus |url=http://www.capeargus.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=3571&fArticleId=vn20080228113641490C401174}}</ref> This has resulted in the "[[No Land! No House! No Vote!]]" Campaign which became very prominent during elections.<ref>{{cite news |date=5 May 2005 |title=The 'No Land, No House, No Vote' campaign still on for 2009 |work=[[Abahlali baseMjondolo]] |url=http://libcom.org/library/the-no-land-no-house-no-vote-campaign-still-2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=12 December 2005 |title=IndyMedia Presents: No Land! No House! No Vote! |url=http://antieviction.org.za/2005/12/12/indymedia-presents-no-land-no-house-no-vote/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090425165902/http://antieviction.org.za/2005/12/12/indymedia-presents-no-land-no-house-no-vote/ |archive-date=25 April 2009 |publisher=Anti-Eviction Campaign}}</ref> In 2018, ''[[The New York Times]]'' reported on the killings of ANC corruption whistleblowers.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Norimitsu Onishi |last2=Selam Gebrekidan |date=30 September 2018 |title=Hit Men and Power: South Africa's Leaders Are Killing One Another |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/30/world/africa/south-africa-anc-killings.html?stream=world |access-date=2 October 2018 |quote="If you understand the Cosa Nostra, you don't only kill the person, but you also send a strong message," said Thabiso Zulu, another A.N.C. whistle-blower who, fearing for his life, is now in hiding.  "We broke the rule of omertà," he added, saying that the party of Nelson Mandela had become like the Mafia.}}</ref>

During an address on 28 October 2021, former president Thabo Mbeki commented on the history of corruption within the ANC. He reflected that Mandela had already warned in 1997 that the ANC was attracting individuals who viewed the party as "a route to power and self-enrichment." He added that the [[National Executive Committee of the African National Congress|ANC leadership]] "did not know how to deal with this problem."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Maphanga |first1=Canny |last2=Gerber |first2=Jan |date=29 October 2021 |title=ANC has failed to keep people seeking 'self-enrichment' out of party |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/anc-has-failed-to-keep-people-seeking-self-enrichment-out-of-party-20211029 |access-date=30 October 2021 |publisher=News24}}</ref> During a lecture on 10 December, Mbeki reiterated concerns about "careerists" within the party, and stressed the need to "purge itself of such members".<ref>{{cite web |last=Maphanga |first=Canny |date=11 December 2021 |title=Many see their ANC membership as a ticket to power and resources – Thabo Mbeki |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/many-see-their-anc-membership-as-a-ticket-to-power-and-resources-thabo-mbeki-20211211 |access-date=11 December 2021 |publisher=News24}}</ref>

In May 2024, the [[International Consortium of Investigative Journalists]] in association with [[amaBhungane]] showed in documents that R200 million in the ANC's election fund was siphoned off to the church of controversial archbishop Bheki Lukhele in Eswatini; the Chief Financial Officer of the ANC, Bongani Mahlalela along with the Ambassador of Eswatini to Belgium, Sibusisiwe Mngomezulu, were implicated in the scheme.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tshwane |first=Tebogo |date=2024-04-30 |title=The ANC, the megachurch and the mystery of the R200-million money flows |url=https://amabhungane.org/the-anc-the-megachurch-and-the-mystery-of-the-r200-million-money-flows/ |access-date=2024-05-29 |website=amaBhungane |language=en-ZA}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Tshwane |first=Tebogo |date=2024-05-08 |title=The ANC, the megachurch, and the mystery money flows – Part Two: 'God's Laundry' |url=https://amabhungane.org/the-anc-the-megachurch-and-the-mystery-money-flows-part-two-gods-laundry/ |access-date=2024-05-29 |website=amaBhungane |language=en-ZA}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-05-26 |title=Millions in suspicious transactions tie South Africa's ruling party to a controversial Swazi archbishop, documents show – ICIJ |url=https://www.icij.org/investigations/swazi-secrets/millions-in-suspicious-transactions-tie-south-africas-ruling-party-to-a-controversial-swazi-archbishop-documents-show/ |access-date=2024-05-29 |language=en-US}}</ref>

===Condemnation over Secrecy Bill===
{{further|Protection of State Information Bill}}

In late 2011, the ANC was heavily criticised over the passage of the [[Protection of State Information Bill]], which opponents claimed would improperly restrict the [[freedom of the press]].<ref name="du Plessis-2011">{{cite news |last=du Plessis |first=Charl |date=22 November 2011 |title=Secrecy bill opposition reaching fever pitch |work=Times Live |url=http://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2011/11/22/secrecy-bill-opposition-reaching-fever-pitch}}</ref> Opposition to the bill included otherwise ANC-aligned groups such as [[Congress of South African Trade Unions|COSATU]]. Notably, [[Nelson Mandela]] and other Nobel laureates [[Nadine Gordimer]], Archbishop [[Desmond Tutu]], and [[F. W. de Klerk]] have expressed disappointment with the bill for not meeting standards of constitutionality and aspirations for freedom of information and expression.<ref>{{cite news |author=AFP |date=22 November 2011 |title=Mandela's office comments on S Africa's secrecy bill |work=Dawn |url=http://www.dawn.com/2011/11/22/mandelas-office-comments-on-s-africas-secrecy-bill.html}}</ref>

===Role in the Marikana killings===
{{further|Marikana massacre}}
The ANC have been criticised for its role in failing to prevent 16 August 2012 massacre of Lonmin miners at Marikana in the Northwest. Some{{who|date=June 2024}} allege that Police Commissioner [[Riah Phiyega]] and Police Minister [[Nathi Mthethwa]] gave the go ahead for the police action against the miners on that day.<ref>{{cite news |date=22 October 2012 |title=Who gave permission to kill?: Bizos |work=Business Report |publisher=IOL |url=http://www.iol.co.za/business/companies/who-gave-permission-to-kill-bizos-1.1408535#.UIbgQxLJX_g}}</ref>

Commissioner Phiyega of the ANC came under further criticism as being insensitive and uncaring when she was caught smiling and laughing during the [[Marikana massacre#Official commission of inquiry|Farlam Commission]]'s video playback of the massacre.<ref>{{cite news |date=24 October 2012 |title=Marikana families horrified at Phiyegas behaviour |publisher=M&G |url=http://mg.co.za/article/2012-10-24-marikana-families-horrified-at-phiyegas-behaviour}}</ref>

In 2014, Archbishop [[Desmond Tutu]] announced that he could no longer bring himself to vote for the ANC, as it was no longer the party that he and Nelson Mandela fought for. He stated that the party had lost its way, and was in danger of becoming a corrupt entity in power.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Smith |first1=David |date=25 April 2014 |title=Desmond Tutu: why I won't vote ANC |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/25/desmond-tutu-mandela-wont-vote-anc |access-date=30 June 2016 |work=The Guardian}}</ref>

===Financial mismanagement===
Since at least 2017, the ANC has encountered significant problems related to financial mismanagement. According to a report filed by the former treasurer-general [[Zweli Mkhize]] in December 2017, the ANC was technically [[Insolvency|insolvent]] as its liabilities exceeded its assets.<ref>{{cite web |last=Paton |first=Carol |date=20 December 2017 |title=ANC is technically insolvent, financial report shows |url=https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/politics/2017-12-20-zweli-mkhize-anc-is-technically-insolvent/ |access-date=13 September 2021 |work=BusinessLIVE}}</ref> These problems continued into the second half of 2021. By September 2021, the ANC had reportedly amassed a debt exceeding R200-million, including over R100-million owed to the [[South African Revenue Service]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Mahlaka |first=Ray |date=12 September 2021 |title=The ANC, a tax evader? Massive debt, unpaid salaries, dry donation taps |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-09-12-the-anc-a-tax-evader-massive-debt-unpaid-salaries-dry-donation-taps/ |access-date=13 September 2021 |work=Daily Maverick}}</ref>

Beginning in May 2021, the ANC failed to pay monthly staff salaries on time. Having gone without pay for three consecutive months, workers planned a strike in late August 2021.<ref>{{cite web |last=Madisa |first=Kgothatso |date=25 August 2021 |title=ANC offices shut down as unpaid staff go on 'wildcat strike' |url=https://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2021-08-25-no-end-to-anc-money-woes-as-salaries-not-paid-for-third-straight-month/ |access-date=13 September 2021 |work=Times LIVE}}</ref> In response, the ANC initiated a [[crowdfunding]] campaign to raise money for staff salaries.<ref>{{cite web |last=Mthethwa |first=Cebelihle |date=28 August 2021 |title=ANC resorts to crowdfunding to raise money to pay staff |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/anc-resorts-to-crowdfunding-to-raise-money-to-pay-staff-20210828 |access-date=13 September 2021 |work=News24 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210913073758/https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/anc-resorts-to-crowdfunding-to-raise-money-to-pay-staff-20210828 |archive-date= September 13, 2021 }}</ref> By November 2021, its Cape Town staff was approaching their fourth month without salaries, while medical aid and provident fund contributions had been suspended in various provinces.<ref name="lud1">{{cite news |last1=Ludidi |first1=Velani |date=15 November 2021 |title=ANC staff picket over unpaid salaries |publisher=IOL |agency=Weekend Argus |url=https://www.iol.co.za/weekend-argus/news/anc-staff-picket-over-unpaid-salaries-8cd2a71d-aa4d-4076-9ab8-7e4b4ff5043b |access-date=16 November 2021}}</ref> The party has countered that the Political Party Funding Act, which prohibits anonymous contributions, has dissuaded some donors who previously injected money for salaries.<ref name="teb1">{{cite news |last1=Tebele |first1=Karabo |date=28 July 2022 |title=ANC staff members to continue picket at Nasrec over unpaid salaries |agency=CapeTalk 567AM |url=https://www.capetalk.co.za/articles/450827/anc-staff-members-to-continue-picket-at-nasrec-over-unpaid-salaries |access-date=4 August 2022 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220804100317/https://www.capetalk.co.za/articles/450827/anc-staff-members-to-continue-picket-at-nasrec-over-unpaid-salaries |archive-date= 4 August 2022 }}</ref>

===State capture===
{{further|Zondo Commission}}

In January 2018, then-President Jacob Zuma established the [[Zondo Commission]] to investigate allegations of [[state capture]], [[Corruption in South Africa|corruption]], and [[fraud]] in the public sector.<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 June 2018 |title=Judicial Commission of Inquiry Into Allegations of State Capture (Call for evidence/information) |url=https://pmg.org.za/call-for-comment/694/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608130106/https://pmg.org.za/call-for-comment/694/ |archive-date=8 June 2019 |access-date=6 January 2022 |website=PMG |language=en}}</ref> Over the following four years, the Commission heard testimony from over 250 witnesses and collected more than 150,000 pages of evidence.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Amashabalala |first=Mawande |date=2020-12-21 |title='He was the president': Zondo says there's no place to hide for Zuma |url=https://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2020-12-21-he-was-the-president-zondo-says-theres-no-place-to-hide-for-zuma/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201221140115/https://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2020-12-21-he-was-the-president-zondo-says-theres-no-place-to-hide-for-zuma/ |archive-date=21 December 2020 |access-date=6 January 2022 |website=Sunday Times |language=en-ZA}}</ref> After several extensions, the first part of the final three-part report was published on 4 January 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mahlati |first=Zintle |date=31 December 2021 |title=Zondo to hand deliver State Capture Inquiry report to Ramaphosa on Tuesday |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/zondo-to-hand-deliver-state-capture-inquiry-report-to-ramaphosa-on-tuesday-20211231 |access-date=6 January 2022 |website=News24}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=4 January 2022 |title=Judicial Commission of Inquiry into State Capture Report: Part 1 |url=https://www.statecapture.org.za/site/files/announcements/638/Judicial_Commission_of_Inquiry_into_State_Capture_Report:_Part_1_Vol._1:_SAA_(18_MB).pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220105111952/https://www.statecapture.org.za/site/files/announcements/638/Judicial_Commission_of_Inquiry_into_State_Capture_Report:_Part_1_Vol._1:_SAA_%2818_MB%29.pdf |archive-date=5 January 2022 |access-date=6 January 2022}}</ref>

The report found that the ANC, including Zuma and his political allies, had benefited from the extensive corruption of state enterprises, including the [[South African Revenue Service]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ferreira |first=Emsie |date=6 January 2022 |title=Zondo: ANC was either incompetent or asleep on capture |url=https://mg.co.za/politics/2022-01-06-zondo-anc-was-either-incompetent-or-asleep-on-capture/ |access-date=6 January 2022 |website=Mail & Guardian |language=en}}</ref> It also found that the ANC "simply did not care that state entities were in decline during state capture or they slept on the job – or they simply didn't know what to do."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hunter |first=Qaanitah |date=6 January 2022 |title=ANC 'did not care or they slept on the job or they had no clue what to do' – Zondo Commission report |url=https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/anc-did-not-care-or-they-slept-on-the-job-or-they-had-no-clue-what-to-do-zondo-commission-report-20220106 |access-date=6 January 2022 |website=News24 |language=en}}</ref>

== Electoral history ==
[[File:South Africa national election 2014 ANC vote by ward.svg|thumb|Proportion of votes cast for the ANC in the 2014 election, by ward.
{{legend|#edf8e9|0–20%}}
{{legend|#bae4b3|20–40%}}
{{legend|#74c476|40–60%}}
{{legend|#31a354|60–80%}}
{{legend|#006d2c|80–100%}}]]
[[File:South-africa-anc-percent.svg|thumb|250px|The ANC's performance by region in the [[2024 South African general election]].]]

===National Assembly elections===
{| class=wikitable style=text-align:center
!Election
!Party leader
!Votes
!%
!Seats
!+/–
!Position
!'''Result'''
|-
|[[1994 South African general election|1994]]
|[[Nelson Mandela]]
|12,237,655
|62.65%
|{{Composition bar|252|400|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{increase}} 252
|{{increase}} 1st
|{{yes2|ANC–[[National Party (South Africa)|NP]]–[[Inkatha Freedom Party|IFP]] coalition government}}
|-
|[[1999 South African general election|1999]]
| rowspan="2" |[[Thabo Mbeki]]
|10,601,330
|66.35%
|{{Composition bar|266|400|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{increase}} 14
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|ANC–[[Inkatha Freedom Party|IFP]] coalition government}}
|-
|[[2004 South African general election|2004]]
|10,880,915
|69.69%
|{{Composition bar|279|400|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{increase}} 13
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Supermajority government}}
|-
|[[2009 South African general election|2009]]
| rowspan="2" |[[Jacob Zuma]]
|11,650,748
|65.90%
|{{Composition bar|264|400|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{decrease}} 15
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Majority government}}
|-
|[[2014 South African general election|2014]]
|11,436,921
|62.15%
|{{Composition bar|249|400|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{decrease}} 15
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Majority government}}
|-
|[[2019 South African general election|2019]]
| rowspan="2" |[[Cyril Ramaphosa]]
|10,026,475
|57.50%
|{{Composition bar|230|400|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{decrease}} 19
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Majority government}}
|-
|[[2024 South African general election|2024]]
|6,459,683
|40.18%{{efn|From 2024, seats in the National Assembly are determined by a combination of the national ballot, and the nine regional ballots. Only the national ballot figures are shown here.}}
|{{Composition bar|159|400|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{decrease}} 71
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|[[Third Cabinet of Cyril Ramaphosa|Government of National Unity]]}}
|}
{{Notelist}}

=== National Council of Provinces elections ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
!Election
!Party leader
!Seats
!+/–
!Position
!'''Result'''
|-
|[[1994 South African general election|1994]]
|[[Nelson Mandela]]
|{{Composition bar|60|90|hex=Green}}
|{{increase}} 60
|{{increase}} 1st
|{{yes2|ANC–[[National Party (South Africa)|NP]]–[[Inkatha Freedom Party|IFP]] governing majority}}
|-
|[[1999 South African general election|1999]]
| rowspan="2" |[[Thabo Mbeki]]
|{{Composition bar|63|90|hex=Green}}
|{{increase}} 3
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|ANC–[[Inkatha Freedom Party|IFP]] governing majority}}
|-
|[[2004 South African general election|2004]]
|{{Composition bar|65|90|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{increase}} 2
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Governing supermajority}}
|-
|[[2009 South African general election|2009]]
| rowspan="2" |[[Jacob Zuma]]
|{{Composition bar|62|90|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{decrease}} 3
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Governing supermajority}}
|-
|[[2014 South African general election|2014]]
|{{Composition bar|60|90|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{decrease}} 2
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Governing supermajority}}
|-
|[[2019 South African general election|2019]]
| rowspan="2" |[[Cyril Ramaphosa]]
|{{Composition bar|54|90|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{decrease}} 6
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Governing majority}}
|-
|[[2024 South African general election|2024]]
|{{Composition bar|43|90|hex={{party color|African National Congress}}}}
|{{decrease}} 11 
||{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|[[Third Cabinet of Cyril Ramaphosa|Government of National Unity]]}}
|}

=== Provincial legislatures ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! rowspan="2" |Election<ref name="dash">{{Cite web |title=Results Dashboard |url=https://www.elections.org.za/NPEDashboard/app/dashboard.html |access-date=2019-05-11 |website=elections.org.za}}</ref>
! colspan="2" |[[Eastern Cape]]
! colspan="2" |[[Free State (province)|Free State]]
! colspan="2" |[[Gauteng]]
! colspan="2" |[[KwaZulu-Natal]]
! colspan="2" |[[Limpopo]]
! colspan="2" |[[Mpumalanga]]
! colspan="2" |[[North West (South African province)|North-West]]
! colspan="2" |[[Northern Cape]]
! colspan="2" |[[Western Cape]]
|-
!%
!Seats
!%
!Seats
!%
!Seats
!%
!Seats
!%
!Seats
!%
!Seats
!%
!Seats
!%
!Seats
!%
!Seats
|-
|[[1994 South African general election|1994]]
|84.35
|48/56
|76.65
|24/30
|57.60
|50/86
|32.23
|26/81
|91.63
|38/40
|80.69
|25/30
|83.33
|26/30
|49.74
|15/30
|33.01
|14/42
|-
|[[1999 South African general election|1999]]
|73.80
|47/63
|80.79
|25/30
|67.87
|50/73
|39.38
|32/80
|88.29
|44/49
|84.83
|26/30
|78.97
|27/33
|64.32
|20/30
|42.07
|18/42
|-
|[[2004 South African general election|2004]]
|79.27
|51/63
|81.78
|25/30
|68.40
|51/73
|46.98
|38/80
|89.18
|45/49
|86.30
|27/30
|80.71
|27/33
|68.83
|21/30
|45.25
|19/42
|-
|[[2009 South African general election|2009]]
|68.82
|44/63
|71.10
|22/30
|64.04
|47/73
|62.95
|51/80
|84.88
|43/49
|85.55
|27/30
|72.89
|25/33
|60.75
|19/30
|31.55
|14/42
|-
|[[2014 South African general election|2014]]
|70.09
|45/63
|69.85
|22/30
|53.59
|40/73
|64.52
|52/80
|78.60
|39/49
|78.23
|24/30
|67.39
|23/33
|64.40
|20/30
|32.89
|14/42
|-
|[[2019 South African general election|2019]]
|68.74
|44/63
|61.14
|19/30
|50.19
|37/73
|54.22
|44/80
|75.49
|38/49
|70.58
|22/30
|61.87
|21/33
|57.54
|18/30
|28.63
|12/42
|-
|[[2024 South African general election|2024]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=NPE Results Dashboard 2024 |url=https://results.elections.org.za/dashboards/npe/ |access-date=2024-06-11 |website=results.elections.org.za}}</ref>
| 62.16 || 45/73
| 51.87 || 16/30
| 34.76 || 28/80
| 16.99 || 14/80
| 73.30 || 48/64
| 51.31 || 27/51
| 57.73 || 21/38
| 49.34 || 15/30
| 19.55 || 8/42
|}

=== Municipal elections ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
!Election
!Votes
!%
!Change
|-
|[[1995–96 South African municipal elections|1995–96]]
| align="right" |5,033,855
| align="right" |58%
| align="right" |
|-
|[[2000 South African municipal elections|2000]]
| align="right" |None released
| align="right" |59.4%
| align="right" |{{increase}} 1.4%
|-
|[[2006 South African municipal elections|2006]]
| align="right" |17,466,948
| align="right" |66.3%
| align="right" |{{increase}} 6.9%
|-
|[[2011 South African municipal elections|2011]]
| align="right" |16,548,826
| align="right" |61.9%
| align="right" |{{decrease}} 4.4%
|-
|[[2016 South African municipal elections|2016]]<ref name="iec_summary">{{cite web |title=Results Summary – All Ballots p |url=http://www.elections.org.za/content/LGEPublicReports/402/Detailed%20Results/National.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.elections.org.za/content/LGEPublicReports/402/Detailed%20Results/National.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |access-date=11 August 2016 |publisher=elections.org.za}}</ref>
| align="right" |21,450,332
| align="right" |55.7%
| align="right" |{{decrease}} 6.2%
|-
|[[2021 South African municipal elections|2021]]
| align="right" |14,531,908
| align="right" |47.5%
| align="right" |{{decrease}} 8.2%
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|South Africa|Politics}}
* [[:Category:Members of the African National Congress]]
* [[Democratic Alliance (South Africa)|Democratic Alliance]]
* [[Solomon Mahlangu Freedom College]]
* [[Step-aside rule]]
* ''[[State v. Ebrahim]]''
* [[United Democratic Front (South Africa)|United Democratic Front]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website}}
* [https://www.jstor.org/site/struggles-for-freedom/southern-africa/sechaba-28107673/ ''Sechaba'' archive] at [[JSTOR]]
* [https://www.jstor.org/site/struggles-for-freedom/southern-africa/mayibuye-28107646/ ''Mayibuye'' archive] at [[JSTOR]]
* [http://www.start.umd.edu/gtd/search/Results.aspx?page=1&casualties_type=&casualties_max=&perpetrator=281&count=100&charttype=line&chart=overtime&ob=GTDID&od=desc&expanded=yes#results-table Attacks attributed to the ANC on the START terrorism database]
* [https://anc-news.co.za List of articles & videos about the ANC] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210115134325/http://anc-news.co.za/ |date=15 January 2021 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20041204081114/http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/anctoday/2004/at48.htm#art2 Response by the ANC General Secretary to COSATU's assessment, 2004]

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