The DA provincial leadership race in Gauteng is turning into a proxy battle for the party's 2019 premiership candidature.
The incumbent Gauteng leader, John Moodey, will stand for re-election to a second term at the party's provincial congress in November this year, but he is reluctant to be nominated as a candidate for the premiership.
Buoyed by the outcome of last year's municipal elections, during which the party dislodged the ANC from power in Tshwane and Johannesburg, the DA is confident of winning South Africa's most strategic province.
The DA's support at municipal level in Gauteng increased from 33% in 2011 to 36% last year, while the ANC plummeted from 60% to 46%.So confident is the DA of winning the province, it is in the process of setting up its 2019 election nerve centre in eastern Johannesburg in Bruma; until now it has been based in Cape Town.
CHALLENGE
Party insiders said Moodey's reluctance to accept the premier position would open the door for other senior party leaders, such as Tshwane mayor Solly Msimanga and national spokeswoman Refiloe Ntsekhe, to be considered as premier candidates.
Moodey is due to be challenged for the provincial leadership by MP Ghaleb Cachalia, who is said to have the full backing of his home region of Ekurhuleni but is struggling to appeal to other regions, such as Tshwane and Johannesburg, which are regarded as Moodey strongholds.
Moodey confirmed this week that he would be seeking a second term as provincial leader even though he was not interested in vying for the premiership of the country's economic hub.
He said he preferred to remain in the back room, championing the DA's campaign to win Gauteng from the ANC."I don't believe, quite frankly, that I will avail myself to serve as premier, to me titles come secondary. All I want to be able to do is to use my talents to run this campaign," he said.
CAPE RACE
Cachalia said he was now taking his campaign to Moodey's strongholds, after securing the support of his home region.
"There are other crucial and populous regions and it's a question of getting my message out through people who support me in those regions. We're focusing on ensuring that we get our message through to those regions outside Ekurhuleni, and that will involve me campaigning," said Cachalia, who added that it was premature to discuss the premiership.
There's also a leadership battle in the DA heartland of the Western Cape.
Although nominations close tomorrow, indications are that acting provincial leader Bonginkosi Madikizela and former MEC for community safety Lennit Max are in a two-horse race for the provincial leadership.
The provincial chairmanship is likely to be contested between incumbent Anton Bredell and MEC for sport and culture Anroux Marais...