Geordin Hill-Lewis was elected DA federal leader on 12 April 2026. (Photo: Felix Dlangamadla) The DA 2026 Federal Congress has delivered the expected outcome and elected Geordin Hill-Lewis as the party’s new federal leader for the next three years.
The 39-year-old Cape Town mayor was widely tipped to win the party’s top job after outgoing DA leader John Steenhuisen announced he would not seek re-election in February this year.
Hill-Lewis won over 90% of the vote to beat rival Sibusiso Dyonase, the DA’s caucus leader in the Sedibeng District Municipality in Gauteng.
In his victory speech on Sunday, 12 April 2026, Hill-Lewis said he accepted the responsibility of federal leader with “humility, gratitude and with a deep sense of duty”.
“I stand before you as your newly elected leader with one promise: however long I have the privilege of serving in this job, I will be dedicated to the mission of building a strong South Africa for everyone. Because South Africa is truly worth it.”
/file/attachments/orphans/WFD_9552_600602.jpg "Geordin Hill-Lewis was elected DA federal leader on 12 April 2026. (Photo: Felix Dlangamadla)")
Hill-Lewis has consistently maintained his intention to remain Cape Town mayor and to run for a second term in the forthcoming municipal polls.
He has said he will not join Cabinet, but will appoint a proxy leader to represent him in the Government of National Unity (GNU), News24 reported. The publication reported that it is widely expected that DA Cabinet members will therefore be reshuffled.
Hill-Lewis laid out a four-point plan for his leadership on Sunday, which included:
- Continuing to show that the DA governs well for everyone in South Africa;
- Connecting more deeply with non-DA voters;
- Being a strong and principled partner in the national coalition; and
- Leading with belief in South Africa.
He said that each generation of DA leaders has built something that the next generation will expand on.
“Each generation deserves our gratitude,” he added.
Reflecting on the roots of the DA, Hill-Lewis said former leader Tony Leon “laid the foundation for the modern DA by proving that opposition matters and that principled opposition is never unpatriotic”.
“On the contrary, principled opposition is loyalty to the Constitution,” he said.
/file/attachments/orphans/6I1A9057_684926.jpg "New federal leader Geordin Hill-Lewis at the DA’s Federal Congress on 12 April 2026. (Photo: Felix Dlangamadla)")
Hill-Lewis was Mmusi Maimane’s chief of staff when he became DA leader in 2015.
“During that time, I learnt something that shaped my own understanding of leadership. I learnt that politics is not only about policy or ideas – it’s also about people,” he added.
“And now, the question before me – the question before us – concerns what the next chapter in our party’s story will be. The question is not whether we can oppose or whether we can govern. The question is whether the DA can lead South Africa – whether we can become the largest party in [the] national government in future.
“And let me tell you as your newly elected leader, my answer is a resounding yes.” DM