JOHANNESBURG, April 12 (Reuters) – South Africa’s Democratic Alliance elected Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis as its leader on Sunday, as the ruling coalition’s second-biggest party sought to capitalise on discontent to expand its power base in this year’s local polls.
The 39-year-old was widely considered the favourite to succeed Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen, who has led the pro-business party since 2019 and is stepping down.
Hill-Lewis has given few details about his plans but is not expected to depart significantly from the policies of his predecessor, who entered the DA into a coalition with the African National Congress in 2024 while continuing to fight it on issues such as national health insurance and affirmative action, which the DA opposes.
“Our mission is to build the DA into the biggest party in South Africa,” Hill-Lewis said on Saturday, ahead of the leadership vote at a party conference near Johannesburg.
The DA holds 22% of seats in the lower house of parliament, second to the ANC with 41%.
(Reporting by Nellie Peyton; Additional reporting by Lulah Mapiye;Editing by Tim Cocks)
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