Hill-Lewis, Johannesburg Mayor, and Democratic Alliance member Geordin Hill-Lewis was elected leader of South Africa’s Democratic Alliance at the party’s federal congress in Johannesburg on Sunday, according to the Associated Press. Hill-Lewis, who currently serves as mayor of Cape Town, said his party’s next chapter would be focused on leading the national government rather than remaining in a supporting role inside coalition rule.
In remarks to party members after the vote, Hill-Lewis defended the Democratic Alliance’s decision to enter into a coalition with the African National Congress, even as he stressed that the intention was to win the next elections outright. He told the party that he was not satisfied with being “a junior partner in a coalition government,” and said, “Our ambition must be to lead the national government. That is the next chapter in our party’s proud history.”
Hill-Lewis argued that the Democratic Alliance has already demonstrated the ability to govern in the cities where it runs municipal administrations, framing that record as evidence the party can compete for national power. He said the Democratic Alliance can win power in South Africa, but added that doing so would depend on governing effectively for “every South African,” remaining present in communities nationwide, and acting as “a strong and principled coalition partner.”
The timing of Hill-Lewis’s election places the new leadership ahead of local polls later this year, with the Associated Press report noting that support for opposition parties has been rising as the African National Congress’s appeal has waned. South Africa’s political landscape has shifted since the 2024 elections, when the African National Congress lost its parliamentary majority and had to negotiate a coalition government with the Democratic Alliance and other smaller opposition parties.
Coalition governance has brought challenges rooted in ideological differences between the two biggest parties in the arrangement. The Associated Press said the government has faced hurdles because the Democratic Alliance and the African National Congress oppose each other on key policies, including affirmative action, land restitution and Black economic empowerment.