On 7 January 2007, "The Sunday Times" reported that Sexwale was campaigning for a leadership position within the ANC, which would have put him in position to replace Thabo Mbeki as President of South Africa in 2009. Sexwale admitted on BBC's Hard Talk that if asked to stand for the elections as party president by structures of the ANC, he would seriously consider it. He was elected to the ANC's 80-member National Executive Committee in December 2007 in 10th place, with 2,198 votes.