New DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis aims for national power
Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has been elected leader of the DA during the party's Federal Congress at the Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand on Sunday.
Image: Itumeleng English
Newly elected DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis has outlined an ambitious plan to transform the party into South Africa’s largest political force, aiming to lead the national government.
Speaking after his election at the DA’s Federal Congress, he declared that the party is entering a “new chapter,” shifting its focus from local governance to competing for national power.
“The question is whether the DA can lead the country… whether we can become the largest party in national government,” he said. “My answer is a resounding yes.”
Hill-Lewis said his leadership would be defined by a singular mission: expanding the DA’s electoral base and positioning it to take control of national government in the coming years.
Central to his address was a four-part strategy aimed at strengthening the party’s electoral prospects.
First, Hill-Lewis emphasised the need for the DA to continue demonstrating governance capacity where it is already in power. He said the party’s track record in municipalities, including his tenure as Cape Town mayor, shows that “the basics work” under DA leadership, citing functioning institutions, responsible budgeting, and service delivery.
“When we do the basics well, it is the poor who benefit the most,” he said, pointing to improvements in sanitation, public transport, and community infrastructure in DA-run areas.
Second, he acknowledged the need to broaden the party’s support base by connecting with voters who have not previously backed the DA. This, he said, would require a more grounded and community-driven approach.
“We must earn trust the old-fashioned way, community by community, street by street, conversation by conversation,” Hill-Lewis said, adding that the party must listen more and be more visible in local communities.
Third, Hill-Lewis addressed the DA’s role within South Africa’s Government of National Unity (GNU), describing it as a “complex and fraught” arrangement, but one that reflects voters’ rejection of instability.
He said the DA would remain a “strong and principled partner” in government, while continuing to oppose policies it believes undermine economic growth or constitutional principles. This includes opposition to what he described as “crony enrichment schemes” and policies that threaten property rights or merit-based appointments.
Finally, Hill-Lewis stressed the importance of political messaging rooted in optimism and belief in the country’s future.
Hill-Lewis identified crime as the country’s most urgent crisis, placing law and order at the centre of his policy agenda.
Describing widespread fear among ordinary South Africans, he said restoring safety and rebuilding the criminal justice system would be his top priority.
“Bringing law and order to South Africa must be our top priority. Not one priority among many,” he said.
He called for sweeping changes to policing, including tackling corruption within the South African Police Service and dismantling criminal syndicates.
According to Hill-Lewis, addressing crime is a prerequisite for economic growth, arguing that investment and job creation cannot take place in an environment of insecurity.
Hill-Lewis also used his speech to rally party structures ahead of the upcoming local government elections, identifying key metros such as Johannesburg, Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, Cape Town, Nelson Mandela Bay and Durban as battlegrounds.
He said success at the local level would be a critical stepping stone towards the 2029 national elections, where the DA aims to transition from a coalition partner to leading government.
“I am not satisfied with being a junior partner in a government of national unity. Our ambition must be to lead the national government,” he said.
While acknowledging the challenges ahead, Hill-Lewis called on party members to intensify their efforts, stressing discipline, organisation, and grassroots engagement as key to winning voter support.
“The journey ahead will not be easy. Sometimes it will feel that, for every person we win over to our cause, there will be another who falls to the cynicism and division of our opponents,” he said.