Democratic Alliance South Africa Wikipedia 

Democratic Alliance South Africa Wikipedia

Last Updated on July 6, 2026

The PPP chairman placed the issue of constitutional rights at the centre of the party’s election campaign in GB. Under the programme, 20,000 scholarships will be awarded to students at all public-sector universities in Sindh. For the first time in history, all the key posts in the Rawalpindi division administration and local police have changed at the same time.

The party also supports a universal old age pension, and the abolishment of pension means tests. In addition, to aid with youth development skills, the party proposed a R6000 opportunity voucher or twelve month community service programme to all high school matriculants. The party also supports legislation that would require the legal guardians of children living in poverty to ensure that their child attends 85 per cent of school classes, and undergoes routine health check-ups.

The Democratic Alliance Youth (DA Youth), which came officially into being in late 2008, was first led by Makashule Gana until 2013, Mbali Ntuli led between 2013 and 2014, Yusuf Cassim led from 2014 to 2018 and Luyolo Mphithi led from 2018 to 2022. The party says that it is committed to ensuring that those entitled to land receive it in the form of direct ownership, and not as lifelong tenants. In contrast, President Cyril Ramaphosa stated that the R3500 per month (R20 an hour) minimum wage was still not a living wage, and would only "advance the struggle for a living wage".

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• In 2019, some commentators speculated that the resignation of the former party's leader, Mmusi Maimane, was a sign of "racial tensions in the party".

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• The party suggests that by relaxing certain regulations in these zones, manufacturers and exporters would be able to grow faster and employ more people.

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• The party says that it is committed to ensuring that those entitled to land receive it in the form of direct ownership, and not as lifelong tenants.

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• The DA Abroad aims to grow the DA's overseas voter base, actively lobby for international awareness and influence for the furtherance of policies and action programmes of the DA and develop a global interconnected community that supports an open opportunity society for all.

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• Get a complete overview of your body condition with detailed health metrics and trends.

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• In the DA's crime plan, "Conquering Fear, Commanding Hope", the DA committed itself to increasing the number of police officers to 250,000.

Other fiscal interventions have included a proposed scrapping of value added tax (VAT) on books and tax rebates for crime prevention expenditure by businesses. This is evident in the party's previous alternative budget frameworks, with both alternative budgets posting deficits. The party's health policy also plans to devote more resources to vaccinations against common childhood illnesses. The DA's "Quality Care for All" programme is focused on tackling the country's high HIV/AIDS infection rate.

The party also announced plans to employ 30,000 additional detectives and forensics experts and 500 more prosecutors, in order to reduce court backlogs, and establish a Directorate for Victims of Crime, which would provide funding and support for crime victims. In the DA's crime plan, "Conquering Fear, Commanding Hope", the DA committed itself to increasing the number of police officers to 250,000. This formed the basis of the philosophy underlying the party's 2009 Election Manifesto, which seeks to build a society by linking outcomes to "opportunity, effort and ability". Former party leader Helen Zille has argued that this stands in direct contrast to the ruling ANC's approach to governance, which she maintains has led to a "closed, crony society for some".

Four men, girl killed after armed men open fire in Qila Abdullah; another 4 men die as rival Bugti factions trade fire over marriage proposal. Injuries reported from Dadyal; Mirpur and Bhimber witness peaceful protests; teargas used to disperse people at Muzaffarabad’s Airport Chowk.

Current policies

Partially on the basis of this campaign the DA contested the 2014 general election, where it once again grew its support base but failed in its stated goal of winning Gauteng province. This campaign focused mainly on the role played by a few key individuals in opposing apartheid – particularly Helen Suzman and Helen Zille. During this time, the party was led by liberal-minded opponents of Apartheid, such as Jan Steytler, Helen Suzman, Zach de Beer, Colin Eglin, Frederik van Zyl Slabbert and Harry Schwarz. The DA's Young Leaders Programme (YLP) is a political leadership development programme for South Africans between the ages of 18 and 35. The DA Abroad aims to grow the DA's overseas voter base, actively lobby for international awareness and influence for the furtherance of policies and action programmes of the DA and develop a global interconnected community that supports an open opportunity society for all. However, the DA, like the ANC, supports a two state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict, seeking peaceful resolution between the two, and for Palestine to be free, saying "the people of Palestine are not defined by Hamas".

It was built over many years by leaders who each strengthened this party in different ways, often in difficult times, and against the prevailing tide. A legacy of leadership The Democratic Alliance did not become the party it is today by accident. Johannesburg is a city of incredible people and untapped potential. When municipalities collapse, crime thrives. Welcome to the DA’s dedicated page for our role in the Government of National Unity (GNU). Law enforcement official Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi reportedly also accused the party Spokesperson on State Security, Dianne Kohler Barnard, of being a part of a crime syndicate.

Following the election of Geordin Hill-Lewis as Federal Leader in April 2026, the DA intensified its focus on crime, with Hill-Lewis describing crime as a national crisis and saying that South Africans could not be truly free if they did not feel safe in their homes, schools and businesses. The party adopted a resolution declaring farm attacks and murders as hate crimes at its 2020 Federal Congress. The DA strongly opposed the disbandment of da bruno παλαιό φάληρο the Scorpions crime investigation unit, and similar efforts to centralise the police service such as the nationwide disbandment of specialised Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) units. In addition, the party announced its support for a prison labour programme, which would put prisoners to work in various community upliftment programmes.

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Economy

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In 2013, the DA launched the "Know Your DA" campaign, in an attempt to try to show that the DA (via its proxy predecessor organisations) was involved in the struggle against apartheid. Helen Suzman and Harry Schwarz, who were prominent anti-apartheid campaigners during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s The current leader of the party is Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, who assumed leadership on 12 April 2026, after the party's Federal Congress. A member of Liberal International and the Africa Liberal Network, the DA traces its roots to the founding of the anti-apartheid Progressive Party in 1959, with many mergers and name changes between that time and the present. The party, considered to be South Africa's most diverse in terms of membership and voters, draws its support predominantly from Afrikaans and English speakers, people aged over 35, as well as white South Africans, Indian/Asian communities, and Coloured communities.

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Social development

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The DA has been against the introduction of a national minimum wage, arguing that workers should be allowed to accept a wage of less than R3500 on their own terms. This fits into the party's broader vision of growing the economy by cutting red tape and regulations it claims is holding back South Africa's economic growth. The party suggests that by relaxing certain regulations in these zones, manufacturers and exporters would be able to grow faster and employ more people. The DA also supports the creation of Industrial Development Zones and Export Processing Zones. The DA supports an inflation-targeting monetary policy regime similar to that of the ANC government.

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History

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