On 17 July 2000, Mugabe announced a new cabinet, from which Mnangagwa was conspicuously absent. His exclusion from the cabinet fanned speculation that Mnangagwa, widely seen as Mugabe's preferred successor, had lost favour with the president. However, the next day, when Parliament was sworn in, Mnangagwa was elected Speaker of the House of Assembly, receiving 87 votes against MDC candidate Mike Mataure's 59 votes. The secret ballot election was the first competitive speaker's election since the country's independence. Rather than having lost the president's favour, Mugabe likely excluded Mnangagwa from the cabinet because he was arranging for him to serve as speaker instead.