Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis will run for a second term while also serving as DA leader. (Photo: Gallo Images / OJ Koloti) DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis (39) is vying to win a second term as mayor of Cape Town, pledging to build a city that is “safer, cleaner, and more affordable”.
The DA announced Hill-Lewis as its mayoral candidate for the City of Cape Town on Saturday, 13 June, after months of public statements by Hill-Lewis about his intention to remain mayor and to run for another term in the forthcoming municipal polls.
At the DA Federal Congress in April, Hill-Lewis said he would not take a role in the Cabinet, but would appoint a proxy leader to represent him in the Government of National Unity (GNU).
“I am humbled and excited and full of joy,” Hill-Lewis said in Hanover Park on Saturday morning.
“I have loved every minute of this job, and you know what, I want to keep doing it. I ask the people of Cape Town for a renewed mandate for me, but [also] a renewed mandate for the DA. A mandate to take Cape Town forward for everyone, because our city belongs to all,” he said.
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South Africa will hold its next municipal elections on Wednesday, 4 November 2026.
The first in-person voter registration weekend is scheduled for next weekend, Saturday, 20 June, and Sunday, 21 June, between 8am to 5pm on both days. Online registration is already open.
The DA won 58.3% of the vote in Cape Town in the 2021 local government elections, while the ANC won 18.6% and the EFF won 4.1%. Both the DA and ANC declined in Cape Town between 2016 and 2021, with the DA decreasing from 66.6%.
The growth of parties like the PA in the province is threatening the DA’s majority ahead of the polls.
On Saturday, Action SA announced that MP Dereleen James would run as its candidate for Cape Town. The PA named Cape Town Councillor Cheslyn Steenberg in April.
Five pledges
On Saturday, Hill-Lewis announced five pledges for the next five years.
“These are pledges that you can hold us to. They are not claims; they are not promises. They are built on the track record of the things that we have done and they are our commitment for the things we are going to do.
“They set out what we will do to take Cape Town forward for everyone,” he said.
His first pledge is stronger policing.
This is in line with the DA leader’s top national priority for the party, announced at the April Congress, to tackle crime and stop fear ruling South Africans’ lives.
“We refuse to accept that crime is just a permanent part of our life. We refuse to accept that mothers must listen to the gunshots at night and wonder if their children are safe during the day,” said Hill-Lewis.
He accused the South African Police Service (SAPS) of “failing too many communities” because it is under-resourced, poorly led, and corrupt.
Part of improving policing in and around the city, Hill-Lewis said, is building Cape Town’s own Metro Police Detective Unit so that it can investigate cases itself.
“This will help ensure that criminals do not just get arrested, but actually go to jail,” he said.
The DA has consistently pushed for the devolution of certain policing powers to the Western Cape and the City of Cape Town, arguing that it is the fastest and most effective way to ensure public safety.
His second pledge is more jobs.
“In our first term, Cape Town created more jobs than any other city in South Africa, 480,000 new jobs in four and a half years,” he said.
Hill-Lewis’ solution to creating even more jobs in Cape Town is to cut “the red tape that blocks growth” to allow for more investment in the city.
Third, Hill-Lewis pledged reliable and affordable services for Capetonians.
This promise includes reducing the city’s reliance on the State power utility Eskom, and continuing to expand and improve Cape Town’s wastewater infrastructure, according to Hill-Lewis.
Tackling Cape Town’s sewage crisis was Hill-Lewis’ top priority when he was elected mayor in November 2021. Over his term, sewage pollution in parts of the city has remained a pressing issue.
/file/attachments/orphans/ED_427946_203374.jpg "Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis visits Strand Beach on 6 January 2023 after a section of Strand Beach was recently reopened after water quality testing showed bathing to be safe once again. (Photo: Gallo Images / ER Lombard)")
“We do not want people to live with blockages and overflows, and we are going to bring them down even more again in this next term of office. We will replace 100 kms of fresh water pipe and 100 kms of sewer pipe and upgrade every year for the next five years,” Hill Lewis said.
Hill-Lewis’ fourth pledge is more housing.
Cape Town’s housing crisis is rooted in apartheid spatial planning, land market dynamics, limited affordable housing supply and rapid urbanisation.
Out-of-control housing prices and rentals are forcing working families and residents out of Cape Town’s central suburbs, causing them to spend more money and time on commuting to school and work, News24 reported.
On Saturday, Hill-Lewis acknowledged that Cape Town’s growth is placing “pressure on housing, transport and services”.
“To take Cape Town forward, we will ramp up our affordable rental units programme by working with the private sector. We will release even more city-owned land for affordable and social housing units.
“We will upgrade informal settlements, and we will protect communities from unlawful land occupation, because illegal occupation does not solve the housing crisis – it makes it worse,” said Hill Lewis.
Lastly, Hill-Lewis’ fifth pledge is cleaner public spaces.
He promised to invest more in cleaning up the city’s public spaces.
“You’ve seen how much I love to pick up litter. It’s a passion; it’s an obsession of mine. It’s not just about having clean streets; again, it is about people. I want every child in our city to grow up in a clean neighbourhood,” said Hill Lewis. DM