In the 1999 general election, Mnumzana was elected to an ANC seat in the National Assembly.[1][2] Years later, during investigations into the Travelgate scandal, Mnumzana admitted to a liquidation inquiry that she owed R2,238 to a travel agency, Bathong, where she had redeemed parliamentary travel vouchers during her time as an MP.[3] The liquidators' attorneys investigated her further, finding that she had not accounted for a much larger sum in air tickets.[3][4]
In the 2004 general election, Mnumzana was elected to a seat in the Free State Provincial Legislature, ranked sixth on the ANC's provincial party list.[5] In April 2005, she was additionally appointed to the Free State Executive Council when Premier Beatrice Marshoff named her as Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Arts and Culture.[6] In a further reshuffle in August 2007, she was moved to a new portfolio as MEC for Agriculture;[7] Mamiki Qabathe replaced her in that post in 2008.[8] However, Mnumzana was re-elected to the provincial legislature in the 2009 general election, ranked 20th on the ANC's provincial party list.[9]