Lesufi Takes Charge: ANC Hands Gauteng to Premier in Do-Or-Die Move Before 2026 Polls

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has been appointed ANC Provincial Convenor, leading a 45-member task team tasked with rebuilding the party ahead of the 2026 Local Government Elections.

By Mpho Dube, Editor-in-Chief

The Azanian | Truth. Fearless. Unfiltered.  

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JOHANNESBURG– The African National Congress has placed the political future of Gauteng squarely in the hands of Premier Panyaza Lesufi, unveiling a 45-member Provincial Task Team that gives him sole authority to rebuild a province where the party suffered its worst electoral collapse since 1994.  

The announcement, made late Wednesday night by ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula, marks the party’s most aggressive intervention yet to arrest decline in the country’s economic heartland. Lesufi was named Provincial Convenor, with Mandla Nkomfe as Deputy Convenor and Sochayile “Socks” Khanyile stepping in as Provincial Coordinator, replacing Hope Papo.  

The restructuring comes 10 months before the 2026 Local Government Elections, a contest that will determine control of Johannesburg, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni and test whether the ANC can claw back credibility in the province that sets the tone for national politics.  

The new Provincial Task Team reads like a political war cabinet assembled for a fight the ANC can ill afford to lose. Johannesburg Mayor Dada Morero made the list, signaling that the country’s largest metro will be central to the recovery strategy.

Social Development MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko was appointed Deputy Coordinator, while MEC Tasneem Motara takes on the high-pressure role of fundraiser in a campaign cycle expected to be the most expensive in Gauteng’s history.  

Veteran leader Amos Masondo, who steered the interim structure after the dissolution of the provincial executive last year, remains as an additional member. The inclusion of factional heavyweights alongside strategic loyalists shows the ANC’s attempt to balance competing interests while centralizing decision-making under Lesufi.  

Mbalula framed the move as a decisive intervention.  

“The task team has clear terms of reference to rebuild the organisation and provide strategic leadership,” he said. “It is designed to restore discipline, accelerate renewal and reconnect the ANC with frustrated communities.”  

The mandate is clear on paper. The execution will determine whether Gauteng becomes the model for renewal or the final proof that the ANC has lost its grip on urban South Africa.  

Gauteng’s 34% showing in the 2024 national and provincial elections was more than a bad result. It was a political earthquake. The ANC lost its outright majority in the province, was forced into a coalition arrangement, and watched as opposition parties consolidated control of key metros.  

The decline was driven by a combination of factors: years of factional infighting that paralyzed provincial leadership, persistent service delivery failures in water, electricity and housing, and a growing disconnect with young voters who see the ANC as out of touch with their economic reality.  

Both Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal had their provincial leadership structures dissolved in 2024 after the party’s national vote dropped below 50% for the first time. In KZN, the rise of the uMkhonto we Sizwe Party compounded the crisis.

In Gauteng, the threat is more diffuse, with the DA, EFF and ActionSA all positioning to capitalize on ANC weakness in the metros.  

The Provincial Task Team model has become the ANC’s default response to crisis. It was used in the Western Cape before 2019, in the Free State after 2022, and now again in Gauteng and KZN. The model centralizes power in a small group appointed by Luthuli House, bypassing elected provincial structures in an attempt to impose discipline and unity.  

Handing Lesufi sole convenorship is a calculated gamble. On one hand, he is the ANC’s most visible premier, known for his hands-on approach, social media presence and willingness to take on issues like crime, illegal immigration and youth unemployment head-on. His “Nasi Ispani” job creation program and aggressive policing stance have made him a polarizing but recognizable figure in Gauteng’s townships.  

On the other hand, his style has drawn criticism for bypassing processes and centralizing power in the premier’s office. By making him convenor, the ANC is betting that his visibility and political agility can win back voters faster than a fragmented interim structure.  

Lesufi now holds both the political and administrative levers in the province. As convenor he controls branch processes, candidate selection and messaging ahead of the 2026 polls. As premier he must demonstrate that government can deliver on roads, water, housing and jobs in the very communities that abandoned the ANC in 2024.  

The PTT’s immediate task is organizational stabilization. Branches in Gauteng remain fractured after years of contestation. Candidate disputes and regional interference have derailed past elections. The team must restore functioning structures, resolve disputes quickly, and ensure that candidate lists reflect community input rather than factional deals.  

The second task is political messaging. The ANC’s 2024 campaign in Gauteng failed to resonate. Voters heard little about jobs, service delivery or safety beyond slogans. The task team must craft a message that speaks directly to unemployment, crime and the cost of living while showing a plan to fix what is broken.  

The third task is delivery. In local government, credibility is built street by street. The metros of Johannesburg, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni are under coalition governments, but the provincial government still controls housing, roads and parts of health and education. Visible improvements in these areas will do more for the ANC’s brand than any political rally.  

Analysts have warned that task teams alone do not win elections. Without measurable improvements in service delivery and a break from the perception of internal chaos, the ANC risks repeating 2024’s losses on a larger scale.  

If the ANC is to have any chance in Gauteng in 2026, Lesufi’s task team needs quick, visible wins. Here are the three pressure points:

1. Stabilize branches and kill factionalism: Branch meetings in Ekurhuleni, Johannesburg and Tshwane remain battlegrounds. The PTT must enforce discipline, resolve disputes within 30 days, and ensure candidate processes are transparent. Anything less will see the same old infighting resurface before nominations.  

2. Make service delivery visible in townships: Gauteng’s collapse came from the wards. Potholes, water outages, illegal dumping and slow housing delivery drove voters away. The province controls key budgets. Lesufi must redirect visible resources to high-loss wards and make sure communities see and feel the difference before December.  

3. Reclaim the youth and jobs narrative: The ANC lost young voters in 2024 because it sounded like the past. Lesufi’s “Nasi Ispani” program has reach, but it needs scale and credibility. The task team must link job drives directly to branch structures, partner with TVET colleges, and show that ANC membership translates to opportunity.  

The 2026 Local Government Elections are not just about metros. They are about whether the ANC can rebuild a base in Gauteng ahead of the 2027 national elective conference and the 2029 general elections. Losing Gauteng further would leave the party without a viable path to reclaiming a national majority.  

For Lesufi, the stakes are personal as well as political. A successful turnaround would position him as the leading candidate to take over the ANC in Gauteng permanently and strengthen his standing nationally. A failure would confirm the view that his approach works in government communications but not in party building.  

The next few months will test whether the ANC’s intervention is too little, too late, or whether Lesufi can use this moment to reset the relationship between the party and the people of Gauteng. If he fails, Gauteng will be gone. If he delivers, the ANC’s national recovery starts here.