Africa-Press – South-Africa. It was a landslide victory for the top leadership of the DA in KwaZulu-Natal that was elected at the party’s provincial congress on Saturday.
Dean Mcpherson retained his position as provincial chairperson, with provincial leader Francois Rodgers also coming back for the second term.
News24 saw the results of the race. Rodgers obtained 287 (64%) of the votes compared to his rival, Bongumusa Nhlabathi, who was only voted by 158 (35%) of the delegates.
Mcpherson beat DA veteran leader Diane Kohler Barnard – who only received 136 (36%) votes compared to Mcpherson who was voted by 309 (69%) delegates.
There was overwhelming joy at the Durban International Convention Centre when Macpherson and Rodgers were announced as having retained their positions.
Sthembiso Ngema, who was previously the deputy chairperson, was elected the deputy provincial leader and obtained 280 (63%) votes compared to 163 of the votes that Mzamo Billy got.
Ngema will replace uMngeni Mayor Christopher Pappas, who did not stand for a second term.
One of the highly-contested positions was that of deputy chairperson, which saw 10 people contesting. But, in the end, Martin Meyer, Hlengiwe Shozi, and Hannah Winkler were announced as the winners.
The leadership voted at this conference will be the ones taking the DA in the province to the 2024 elections.
In their speeches, the party’s leaders signaled their readiness to govern KZN come the 2024 elections. The party is confident that it is going to unseat the governing ANC.
Delivering his victory speech, Rodgers said: “Look out ANC in the province of KwaZulu-Natal … I suggest what the ANC starts doing now is looking alternate offices outside of Msunduzi. Your days are numbered, we are coming for you, we have had enough, our residents, our voters have had enough, your days are numbered.”
He gave marching orders to the delegates and told them that the work of unseating the ANC had started. “We have a huge job ahead of us. But what makes it more sweet is that we have all the opportunities we have never, ever, in my political career that I can remember had the opportunity that we got now,” said Rodgers.
He added that it was the “responsibility” of the DA to be the home to disgruntled ANC members.
“We are going to convince those people, and we are going to show them that where we govern, we govern well, and we are going to convince them to vote for the DA so that in 2024, we can show the people of KwaZulu-Natal what a DA government can do,” said Rodgers.
Macpherson echoed Rodgers’ sentiments, and said the party has a “job to do like no other” in becoming the “next provincial government”.
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