President Cyril Ramaphosa has been re-elected leader of the governing African National Congress (ANC) for a second term on Monday.
Ramaphosa, who had been widely tipped to secure a second five-year term as ANC leader at a party gathering in Johannesburg, beat former health minister Zweli Mkhize in a two-horse race.
The announcement of Ramaphosa’s victory was greeted by wild cheers from his supporters in the large conference hall.
The Rand, banking stocks and local sovereign bonds made gains after Ramaphosa’s win.
The Rand is trading at R17.22 to the US dollar; R21.04 to the Pound sterling; R18.30 to the euro; and R11.58 to the Australian dollar.
The euro is trading at one dollar, and the dollar is at 136.08 Japanese yen.
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His allies also took top seats in the party, with chairman Gwede Mantashe retaining his position while Fikile Mbalula was elected Secretary-General, who takes charge of the day-to-day running of the party.
Ramaphosa’s re-election campaign was dogged by the “Farmgate” scandal that broke in June involving large sums of foreign currency found hidden at his private game farm.
Ramaphosa has denied wrongdoing and not been charged with any crimes over the scandal, but it has raised questions about how he acquired the money and whether he declared it.
