Congress of the People (South African political party)
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Congress of the People
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|---|---|
| President | Mosiuoa Lekota |
| Chairperson | Pakes Dikgetsi |
| Secretary-General | Lyndall Shope-Mafole |
| Spokesperson | Denis Bloem |
| Deputy President | William Mothipa Madisha |
| Deputy Secretary General | Deidre Carter |
| Founder | Mosiuoa Lekota, Mbhazima Shilowa and Mluleki George |
| Founded | 16 December 2008 |
| Split from | African National Congress |
| Headquarters | 34–36 Fricker Road, Illovo, Gauteng |
| Student wing | COPE Students Movement [COPESM] |
| Youth wing | COPE Youth Movement [COPEYM] |
| Women's wing | COPE Women's Movement [COPEWM] |
| Business and Professionals' wing | COPE Business and Professionals |
| Ideology |
Social democracy Social liberalism Progressivism |
| Political position | Centre-left |
| National affiliation | Collective for Democracy |
| Colours | Yellow and Red |
| Slogan | Reliable, Accountable, Incorruptible |
| National Assembly seats |
3 / 400
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| NCOP seats |
0 / 90
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| Party flag | |
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| Website | |
| www |
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The Congress of the People (COPE) is a South African political party formed in 2008 by former members of the African National Congress (ANC). The party was founded by former ANC members Mosiuoa Lekota, Mbhazima Shilowa and Mluleki George to contest the 2009 general election. The party was announced following a national convention held in Sandton on 1 November 2008, and was founded at a congress held in Bloemfontein on 16 December 2008. The name echoes the 1955 Congress of the People at which the Freedom Charter was adopted by the ANC and other parties, a name strongly contested by the ANC in a legal move dismissed by the Pretoria High Court.
In the 2009 general election, the party received 1,311,027 votes and a 7.42% share of the vote. Following the 2009 elections, COPE experienced a leadership dispute between factions supporting Mosiuoa Lekota and others supporting Mbhazima Shilowa, that led to a 2013 court battle, and continued into 2014. After the 2014 election, COPE was left with only three seats in the National Assembly, down from 30 seats in 2009.
Despite its reduced stature, the party has joined with the much larger Democratic Alliance (DA) and several other smaller parties to co-govern Nelson Mandela Bay, Johannesburg and Tshwane after the 2016 municipal elections.
The birth of the party can be traced back to the 52nd ANC national conference held at Polokwane in December 2007. The conference resulted in the election of Jacob Zuma and his supporters, ahead of Thabo Mbeki and his supporters, to the ANC's governing body, the National Executive Committee. Zuma was elected ANC president ahead of Mbeki. The conference highlighted the different factions within the ANC and brought to the fore the diametrically opposed philosophies between Mbeki and Zuma. This included differences in both style and economic policy – the former pursued neoliberal economic policies and was known for an aloof personality and plotting against his political opponents, while his successor is more left-wing and populist, and has a closer relationship with the South African Communist Party and Congress of South African Trade Unions. The split also revealed underlying ethnic tensions between Zulu and Xhosa speakers, represented by Jacob Zuma and Thabo Mbeki respectively, as they jostled for political predominance.
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