Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has officially confirmed that he is in the running to become the next Federal Leader of the Democratic Alliance, positioning himself as a key contender to succeed outgoing leader John Steenhuisen.
Hill-Lewis announced following weeks of speculation after Steenhuisen revealed he would not seek re-election.
During a briefing at the Elsies River Civic Centre on Friday morning, the mayor said his decision was driven by a sense of duty and optimism about South Africa’s future.
“It is with a sense of pride and excitement that I today announce that I am standing to be the next leader of the Democratic Alliance… With deep love for our country, I will work arm in arm with each of you to lead our country on the path to prosperity.” Hill-Lewis said.
He added that the leadership contest presents “an opportunity for our party to renew itself again and to reach for even greater heights.”
The DA’s Cilliers Brink and Siviwe Gwarube endorsed Hill-Lewis for the position.
“Cape Town and the Western Cape can’t have all the good things for themselves… we need to roll out what we’ve done in this place with the leadership that we’ve achieved at this place to the rest of the country,” said Brink.
Meanwhile, Education Minister Gwarube confirmed she had formally nominated Hill-Lewis.
“I nominated Geordin because I believe in his ability to lead the DA, and I believe in his ability to help lead South Africa into a new era of possibility.”
Speaking to his vision for the party should he be elected at the Federal Congress in April, Hill-Lewis stressed unity and confidence in the country’s potential.
“When I go to Congress, when I will be asking for a mandate to build a stronger DA, because if we are going to build a stronger South Africa, then we must have a stronger Democratic Alliance. Stronger DA, stronger SA… that is our mission,” Hill-Lewis said.
The four key points he highlighted for his campaign were to show how well the DA governs, to close the gap with the citizens who have never voted for the party, to make an impact in the Government of National Unity and “lead with belief in South Africa”.
“If elected as leader of the Democratic Alliance, I will make it my mission to restore hope in our country. I’m talking about the hope that comes when we genuinely adopt a can-do mindset, when we run towards our hardest problems instead of constantly ignoring them”.
He also took a moment to reflect on his role leading the City of Cape Town, noting that his time in that role has shown that “decline is preventable, that failure is reversible, that we can move forward if we show leadership even in the face of our hardest, most intractable challenges”.
