S. African opposition elects first black leader

ORT ELIZABETH: South Africa’s main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, on Sunday elected its first black leader, a major step in its bid to present itself as an alternative to the ruling African National Congress (ANC). The DA, which has been widely seen as a party of middle-class whites, won 22 percent of the ballot in last year’s general election and is looking to broaden its appeal among black voters, two decades after the end of the apartheid regime. Mmusi Maimane, aged just 34, joined the DA in 2009 and was fast-tracked through the ranks by Helen Zille, who stood down as party leader after eight years in office. Zille did not publicly endorse Maimane, but he was the clear favorite to win the secret ballot. -arabnews