The new leader of South Africa's second-largest party has to solve a problem that none of his three immediate predecessors were able to solve: how to expand the popularity of the Democratic Alliance beyond its core support made up mostly of white people and other racial minorities.
Despite the advent of the multi-racial “Rainbow Nation” and the end of the racist apartheid system in 1994, South Africa remains divided along racial lines.
For the DA to take charge of the country, Geordie Hill-Lewis, who took over the party reins from John Steenhuisen on Sunday, will have to find a way to bridge divisions and appeal to the country's black majority.
Its vote share has been stuck at or around 20% since the 2014 general elections.
There was much noise over the 2024 election result, in which the African National Congress's support fell below 50% for the first time and it was forced to form a coalition with the DA and eight other parties. But the pro-business DA's entry into power masked the fact that it still only got 22% of the vote.
Hill-Lewis, who still looks youthful at 39, acknowledged the gap and speaking on national broadcaster SABC on Monday she said the party needed to “overcome the trust deficit”.
Briefing reporters afterward, he clarified that winning the trust of as many black people as possible, who make up about 80% of the population, would be “my main focus.”
Hill-Lewis was elected alongside Solly Msimanga and other black politicians, giving the DA a more diverse leadership team (Getty Images)
“For a long time the racial silos in South Africa have been firm and solid but they are breaking down and breaking down and that's encouraging,” he said.
The party's last attempt to appeal to more black voters failed when its first black leader, Mmusi Maimane, stepped down in 2019 after only four years in the role, saying the DA was “not the most appropriate vehicle to pursue the vision of building a united South Africa”.
Things may be different this time because when Hill-Lewis was elected on Sunday, along with her, black politicians like Solly Msimanga, Siviwe Gwarube and Solly Malatsi, the party leader in Gauteng province, were voted into senior party positions.
Hill-Lewis described the successful candidates as “the most diverse and youthful group of leaders we have ever seen in the history of the DA”.
The new leadership is more racially mixed than before, although the gender imbalance remains, with just one woman in a senior position.
In her early statements as leader, Hill-Lewis did not outline any new policies that could broaden the party's appeal, but she clearly believed that if she could continue to emphasize issues such as efficiency in government and the country's high crime levels, people would come around.
“We have to make it clear to black South Africans that we are indeed invested in their advancement, but we do not support the current system of BEE,” he said, referring to the ANC's policy of black economic empowerment, an effort to address racial imbalances in business, which the DA opposes.
Hill-Lewis has declared that he wants to govern for all South Africans (Gallo via Getty Images)
Political analyst Dr Levi Ndou said Hill-Lewis's election, along with other young leaders in the party, is “the beginning of a new era” and could be a “very good thing” for the organisation.
Ndou reflected that while “race has always been a factor” in the DA, he said the party had sought to address it with its new leadership that “resembles a party that is multiracial”.
Unlike her predecessor Steenhuysen, who is a cabinet minister and Member of Parliament, Hill-Lewis has decided not to take any role in the coalition government and remains Mayor of Cape Town.
This puts him in the interesting position of managing a rocky relationship with the ANC in government, while also campaigning to defeat the party in local elections scheduled for late this year or early next.
The DA has been a harsh critic of the ANC on many economic and foreign policy issues and the uneasy national coalition has faced many obstacles. Despite this, both the parties have been successful in keeping the Sangh united.
Siviwe Gwarube is the only woman elected to the top post in the DA (Gallo via Getty Images)
Hill-Lewis got his political start in the DA at the age of 18 and soon rose through the party ranks.
Political analyst Sandile Tswana described him as someone who was “groomed into the DA”.
In 2011, at the age of 24, he was elected as an MP, becoming the youngest MLA at that time.
A decade later, he made history again when he became the youngest mayor of Cape Town.
Saying he has no intention of taking a position in President Cyril Ramaphosa's cabinet, Hill-Lewis intends to maintain a strong hold on DA ministers in the government. He confirmed that there would be a performance review in the coming months.
He said, “If after that I feel there needs to be a change, we will do so. No one is entitled to any rank or position. It must be earned through performance.”
Additional reporting by Nobuhle Simelane
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(Getty Images/BBC)
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