Q&A: Candid conversations with South Africa's party leaders

African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) leader Kenneth Meshoe says the ANC will continue its downward trajectory as more South Africans interrogate what the governing party has done to improve their lives.

Meshoe believes the ANC will join the ranks of other liberation movements that have been unable to maintain political power after the 30-year-mark.

Before laying the foundations of Build One South Africa (BOSA), Mmusi Maimane says he needed time to recover from the emotional turmoil of his DA exit in 2019.

“I felt I needed to heal from that because [of] the level of toxicity that was within the former party,” Maimane told News24.

ANC national chairperson Gwede Mantashe says he "doesn't imagine" that the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party will be the fifth largest party in the country, as some polls may suggest.

Mantashe says the MK Party has grown its presence in a few regions of the KwaZulu-Natal, like Empangeni and New Castle, because of its "tribal politics".

Politics is not a popularity contest for Rise Mzansi leader Songezo Zibi.

The former newspaper editor says earning the trust of constituents has been his core focus while building his new party over the past 12 months.

GOOD leader Patricia de Lille believes that sexual misconduct allegations confronting her political party in recent years are reflective of the broader gender-based violence crisis plaguing society.

Last month, the GOOD party booted one of its members, a former rugby coach, whose facing two counts of attempted sexual assault and crimen injuria in the Vredendal Magistrate's Court.

Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus) leader Pieter Groenewald believes his party holds appeal for black South Africans who share conservative values and prioritise community upliftment. Speaking on News24's Q&A elections podcast, Groenewald emphasised that the FF Plus is a party for all South Africans.

UDM president Bantu Holomisa believes the time for one-party dominance is over.

He says former president Jacob Zuma and his uMkhonto weSizwe Party should not be underestimated because Zuma boasts a national footprint.

Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader Gayton McKenzie says he is happy to keep funding the party out of his own pocket, with help from his deputy, Kenny Kunene, to avoid undue influence from donors.

McKenzie, who is the party's biggest donor, forked out nearly R3 million to keep it afloat between September and December last year.

In the latest episode of News24's Q&A elections podcast, the ex-con-turned-politician claims the PA was offered a R15 million donation, which he declined.

ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba says there's no way that the Democratic Alliance (DA) will expand its foothold in the May general elections, despite what polling data may suggest.

In the latest episode of News24's Q&A elections podcast, Mashaba says he’s confident that his party will surpass the DA in national support, adding that ActionSA had previously proved pollsters wrong in the 2021 municipal vote.

DA leader John Steenhuisen says on a personal level, he misses former party leader Mmusi Maimane, but believes Maimane was too inexperienced while the party rushed to get a leader who looked a certain way.

Looking back at the disastrous 2019 election for the DA, Steenhuisen lamented on how Maimane’s leadership affected the party.