Provincial support has been garnered as part of a key strategy to win votes at the crucial conference.
Security at the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein, where the ANC is holding its national conference, has been beefed-up.
A frosty contest is expected at Mangaung as the "cold war" between Jacob Zuma and Kgalema Motlanthe escalates.
Some in the ANC have inflated room prices in the Free State for the Mangaung conference, but the leadership has rented school and university hostels.
Various anti-Zuma factions have launched bids to declare the provincial processes invalid, writes Mmanaledi Mataboge.
Zuma can save the ANC by not accepting nomination for the presidency at Mangaung, says Paul Khitsane.
ANC supporters of Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe believe Zuma’s supporters are planning a purge during the ANC’s national conference next week.
Branch paradox is central to the ANC — and its 53rd national conference in Mangaung in less than 10 days’ time.
The run-up to Mangaung has seen vicious infighting, organisational chaos and accusations of fraud and manipulation at ANC branch level.
On speculation that he would be nominated as president or deputy, Motlanthe has said such talk was ‘coffee-house bubbles not worthy of response’.
The ANC in the Western Cape missed the November 30 deadline for nominating its preferred candidate for the party’s Mangaung elective conference.
Tiisetso Makube takes a ride to find some answers about the succession race but instead finds more questions about the troubled state of the nation.
Former police commissioner Bheki Cele’s popularity could prove divisive if he carries an anti-Zuma mandate, writes Niren Tolsi.
The smart money is still on ANC president Jacob Zuma being re-elected at the Mangaung conference next month, writes Matuma Letsoalo.
Zuma plans his reign after Mangaung, while opposition parties table a motion of no confidence in the president in Parliament.
Cyril Ramaphosa moves to clear his name and Cosatu works to reclaim lost ground in the North West.
Jacob Zuma’s plans for the economy are in the spotlight, and Fikile Mbalula denies reports he is considering switching sides ahead of the conference.
More than 30 ANC branches have nominated Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba for a top six position in the party, says a newspaper report.
ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe has lambasted Cosatu’s decision to announce its preferred candidates for the ANC’s top positions in Mangaung.
Sports Minister and ANC head of campaigns Fikile Mbalula has warned ANC members not to fall for "dirty money" that is being dished out to buy votes.
Gwede Mantashe has defended the decision to include ANC branches deemed not to be in good standing in the final audit report.
President Jacob Zuma chews the fat with his enemies, attempting to woo the likes of Fikile Mbalula while Cosatu mulls over its preferred candidate.
The race hots up as nominations for the ANC leadership opened, and membership grows in Zuma’s stronghold but what does this mean for the other contenders?
A poll says South Africans preferred Kgalema Motlanthe as their leader but last week’s Cosatu congress went in favour of Jacob Zuma — who will prevail?
The ANC smells a Marikana rat and the Cosatu national congress could be a preview of what’s to come in Mangaung.
The anti-Zuma campaign begins to take shape and the Cosatu congress looms – the outcome of which is sure to prove decisive on the road to Mangaung.
As Zuma detractors denounce and Malema makes merry, the Marikana tragedy is proving to be a decisive factor in the run-up to Mangaung. Watch the video.
The Marikana massacre has exposed an increasingly tense relationship between the ANC leadership and its fractious members in North West.