On Monday, 18 December 2017, Cyril Ramaphosa was named as the new president of the ANC at the 54th ANC National Conference at Nasrec in Johannesburg. The much-anticipated announcement saw a crescendo reception from South Africa and the rest of the world.
Ramaphosa beat Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma by 179 votes with Ramaphosa securing 2,440 votes in total and Dlamini-Zuma 2,261, making Ramaphosa the new leader of the governing party. After months of campaigning from both candidates, intense media coverage and predictions, it finally boiled down to this moment.
From South Africa to Europe, to the U.S., here are the best social media reactions from Twitter.
After bruising battle, ANC veteran Cyril Ramaphosa chosen to succeed South Africa's Jacob Zuma as party leader https://t.co/0ttTwIIdiOpic.twitter.com/3iJTx7o8hJ
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) December 18, 2017
I am so emotional!!!! Cry my beloved country #myanc#ANC54#Ramaphosa#CR17 😭😭♥️😭
— Kopano (@Kopano_) December 18, 2017
After Ramaphosa won, there was optimism and excitement about the prospect of the South African rand and possible a better economy.