South Africa's Zuma lifts graft shadow in big comeback

By Michael Georgy

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Jacob Zuma is on track to become South Africa's next president in 2009 with a dramatic political comeback despite a high-profile rape trial and corruption allegations that tarnished him.

ANC Deputy President Zuma beat his rival state President Thabo Mbeki in a bruising race to lead the ruling African National Congress, which led the fight against apartheid.

The party dominates politics so he is almost certain to take over as head of state when Mbeki has to step down in 2009.

Zuma's rise to the top ANC job has worried some investors, who fear his left-leaning trade union, and communist allies will try to steer him away from policies behind economic growth.

But Zuma has been busy meeting investors at home and abroad in a charm offensive designed to reassure them that he will not make sweeping changes to Africa's biggest economy.

"Jacob Zuma is a deeply flawed candidate. He is accused of corruption and his judgment has been called into question on a number of occasions," said Marian Tupy, political analyst at the U.S.-based Cato Institute think tank.

"Still, he may be a better choice for ... South Africa than another five years of Thabo Mbeki, the incumbent, who over the last decade has grown more unaccountable and started to exhibit clear signs of paranoia."

Many were stunned when Zuma admitted during a rape trial that he had unprotected sex with his HIV-positive accuser and said he took a shower afterwards to reduce the risk of infection.

He was acquitted but the case and bribery allegations in an arms scandal often overshadow his status as an anti-apartheid hero who spent a decade in prison with Nelson Mandela.

Yet, Zuma has successfully portrayed himself as a man of the people, enjoying wide support from the ANC rank-and-file, who believe he is a strong leader who can help millions of poor South Africans still living in grim townships.

A former member of ANC's Umkhonto we Sizwe military wing, Zuma rose to become head of intelligence, a post that gave him leverage with allies and opponents alike.

Hailing from KwaZulu-Natal province, Zuma has earned respect as a peacemaker at home, mediating between the ANC and the Zulu-dominated Inkatha Freedom Party in the early 1990s to head off a possible civil war.

The 65-year-old often follows traditional ways, shedding his suit for Zulu regalia -- a shield and cow hide -- when he retreats to his rural homeland.

He has been cagey about how he would fight an AIDS epidemic and rampant crime and keep an economic boom going.

Yet Zuma has been exuding confidence on an American-style campaign trail, shaking hands with everyone from businessmen in Texas to village elders at home.