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The Deal: Inside the Talks that Shaped South Africa's Future
The results of the 29 May 2024 elections caused a seismic shift in South Africa’s political landscape. For the first time in three decades of democracy, the ruling ANC did not emerge with a majority.
With a constitutional deadline of just fourteen days to elect a president, the nation held its breath. Would the ANC forge a so-called doomsday coalition with the EFF and Patriotic Alliance, or a centrist partnership with its nemesis, the DA? What role would smaller parties play, and how would Jacob Zuma’s disruptive MK party impact on the negotiations?
The Deal takes you behind the scenes of the negotiations that redefined a nation, providing exclusive interviews with party leaders, unique insights and stories, thoughtful analysis and vital context. From the exclusive Inanda Club to clandestine hotel basements and affluent private houses on Johannesburg’s Westcliff Ridge, negotiating teams met under immense pressure. Amidst volatile markets, a skittish currency and intense social media scrutiny, every decision was critical.
Witness the nail-biting moments as talks through bilaterals and back channels teetered on the brink of collapse, and discover the personality clashes, factionalism and deft political manoeuvring that ultimately led to the establishment of the Government of National Unity. The Deal is a compelling record of history.
With a constitutional deadline of just fourteen days to elect a president, the nation held its breath. Would the ANC forge a so-called doomsday coalition with the EFF and Patriotic Alliance, or a centrist partnership with its nemesis, the DA? What role would smaller parties play, and how would Jacob Zuma’s disruptive MK party impact on the negotiations?
The Deal takes you behind the scenes of the negotiations that redefined a nation, providing exclusive interviews with party leaders, unique insights and stories, thoughtful analysis and vital context. From the exclusive Inanda Club to clandestine hotel basements and affluent private houses on Johannesburg’s Westcliff Ridge, negotiating teams met under immense pressure. Amidst volatile markets, a skittish currency and intense social media scrutiny, every decision was critical.
Witness the nail-biting moments as talks through bilaterals and back channels teetered on the brink of collapse, and discover the personality clashes, factionalism and deft political manoeuvring that ultimately led to the establishment of the Government of National Unity. The Deal is a compelling record of history.
357 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 3, 2025
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About the author
Mandy Wiener
15 books19 followersMandy Wiener is an award-winning journalist for Eyewitness News and Talk Radio 702.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
October 12, 2025
Real insight to the politicians and parties; good in its own right for lessons in how to conduct negotiations under pressure.
As a politically attuned South African, I found this book compelling. Mandy Wiener relies mostly on interviews to carry the narrative, meaning that we see the politicians as people and hear their rational in their own words. (The exception is those who declined to be interviewed, most notably Jacob Zuma of MK and Julius Malema of the EFF.) The result is an exciting, relatable journey through the politics and the negotiations.
I got an insight into the party I voted for: some of it expected, some of it surprising, and some not exactly appealing. Overall, it largely reinforced my decision to support them.
Even if one does not know the political landscape of South Africa (or believes it froze on 10 May 1994 when Mandela was sworn in as president) this book is still good in its own right for lessons in how to conduct negotiations under pressure. The parties all started from different points - the incumbent ANC, the main opposition DA, the nascent but popular MK, the small parties fighting for relevance - which drove competing goals. The negotiators applied various tactics to get the best for their party, including absent authority, low ball and high ball offers, good cop-bad cop routines, divide and conquer, media leaks etc. In many of these cases Wiener gives us both sides of the story, leaving us to judge whether they were successful or not. In the end, the division of power in the coalition government was not proportional to the vote, and the skill or mistakes of the negotiators and the parties played a major part in determining their party's outcome.
As a politically attuned South African, I found this book compelling. Mandy Wiener relies mostly on interviews to carry the narrative, meaning that we see the politicians as people and hear their rational in their own words. (The exception is those who declined to be interviewed, most notably Jacob Zuma of MK and Julius Malema of the EFF.) The result is an exciting, relatable journey through the politics and the negotiations.
I got an insight into the party I voted for: some of it expected, some of it surprising, and some not exactly appealing. Overall, it largely reinforced my decision to support them.
Even if one does not know the political landscape of South Africa (or believes it froze on 10 May 1994 when Mandela was sworn in as president) this book is still good in its own right for lessons in how to conduct negotiations under pressure. The parties all started from different points - the incumbent ANC, the main opposition DA, the nascent but popular MK, the small parties fighting for relevance - which drove competing goals. The negotiators applied various tactics to get the best for their party, including absent authority, low ball and high ball offers, good cop-bad cop routines, divide and conquer, media leaks etc. In many of these cases Wiener gives us both sides of the story, leaving us to judge whether they were successful or not. In the end, the division of power in the coalition government was not proportional to the vote, and the skill or mistakes of the negotiators and the parties played a major part in determining their party's outcome.
Displaying 1 of 1 review