President Thabo Mbeki, who was re-elected to the top post by members of parliament on Friday, has dedicated his entire life to the anti-apartheid struggle and to rebuilding a new multi-racial South Africa.
Growing up as a herdboy who preferred to read books rather than keep an eye on the cattle, he had a simple but tough childhood where he learnt from an early age that the fight against apartheid was a way of life.
Born into a family of prominent activists in the poor village of Mbewuleni in the Eastern Cape, the liberation struggle separated him for long periods - up to 27 years - from his father, moderate communist intellectual Govan Mbeki, who died in 2001.
"By the time we grew up, we were used to being without our parents. We didn't feel the separation, it was a condition of life," Mbeki told the authors of his biography.
Govan Mbeki, who was jailed for 24 years for anti-apartheid activities, was more of a comrade than a parent to his son.
"In my family, no-one depends on one another, no-one looks to the other for this or the other thing - we work as a team as I work with my comrades in the African National Congress. We have the same goal. Thabo has never asked for advice. We strengthen ourselves," Govan Mbeki once said.
The young Mbeki showed an exceptional intellect from the start. As a teenager he defended and debated his views on politics with his parents' colleagues, and when he was 12, a traditional leader sought his advice.
After completing school, Mbeki spent almost 28 years in exile. From 1962, he attended Sussex University where he obtained a master's degree in economics. He then underwent guerrilla training - which he never had occasion to use - in 1969 in the Soviet Union.
While in Britain, a London police officer smashed his fist in Mbeki's face while he was participating in a demonstration against the war in Vietnam. He recently recalled the incident, saying he had deliberately never fixed the broken tooth, which has since become something of a trademark.
"Some of the comrades might have seen I've got a half tooth here - this tooth was broken by the fist of a British policeman. We were demonstrating in front of the United States embassy in London demanding that the Americans get out of Vietnam. Comrades, that's how we grew up," he said at an ANC conference in December 2002.
Mbeki returned to South Africa in 1990 after the ban on the ANC was lifted and became a key figure in talks leading to the end of apartheid in 1994.
He was deputy president and de facto head of government under Nelson Mandela from 1994 to 1999.
In June 1999, he suceeded Mandela, and was never really credited for his behind-the-scenes management of the country as deputy president, but his biographers pointed out: "Much of the glow around Mandela is a reflection of Thabo's work."
Soon after his first election to the presidency, Mbeki made one blunder that will probably haunt him forever. He questioned the link between HIV and Aids, and even though his government has since announced its intention to give out free anti-Aids drugs, the negative perception remains.
He has also been criticised for his policy of quiet diplomacy toward Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and refusal to confront him on human rights has drawn endless criticism, but despite this, he stubbornly sticks with the softly-softly approach to South Africa's northern neighbour.
"It is a pity that Mbeki will one day be remembered for Aids and Zimbabwe when in fact he is a visionary who deserves incredible praise for what he has done for South Africa and the continent," a political analyst observed ahead of an African Union meeting last year.
But Mbeki's unwavering commitment to the African Renaissance and the upliftment of the continent have earned him some well-deserved praise. South Africa has been instrumental in negotiating peace agreements in several conflict-ridden nations, including the vast Democratic Republic of Congo.
Mbeki, 61, has always been seen as lacking the flamboyance and charm of Mandela but that perception may have changed somewhat in the run-up to the April 14 elections.
A re-invented Mbeki went to the homes of "Afrikaaner aunties, sitting on their porches, kissing babies and going door-to-door" to seek votes and "send out a signal that he was really connected," political analyst Judith February said.
Mbeki himself later explained that he believed election rallies to be cumbersome.
"You speak to people and they can't speak back to you. With door-to-door campaigning, there is interaction with the people." - Sapa-AFP