DA doesn’t plan to be secondary GNU partner forever, says Hill-Lewis

Cape Town Mayor and new Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Geordin Hill-Lewis said his party doesn’t plan to be a secondary partner in the Government of National Unity (GNU) forever.

He’s made it clear that the party’s main mission is to become the country’s largest party in the 2029 national elections and the dominant partner in any future GNU.

Hill-Lewis, who does not plan to join the national executive himself, said the party must use the platform to expand its supporter base through its performance in government.

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Hill-Lewis said the newly elected generation of leaders needs to build on the legacies of each of its former federal leaders to take the blue machine to greater heights.

He said the performance of mayors, particularly in metros that it plans to take charge of in the next local government elections, will be key to the goal of attracting a diverse voter base and first-time DA voters.

“We must start by listening more carefully. We must not come with the answer before we've even heard the question. We must be more present, in more communities - and I mean really present, standing shoulder to shoulder with people, helping them solve their problems.”

He’s cautioned against radical coalitions of populism but said he remains hopeful that partnerships like the GNU can work.

“We will not listen to the naysayers, to the people who say that our country cannot be fixed, that the South African dream is dead, or that it is behind us. To the ones who say the decline is inevitable or irreversible, we say we reject that completely.”

Hill-Lewis will have three years to achieve his mission, with the 2029 national election coinciding with the DA’s next federal congress.