‘It’s mission accomplished for me’: What John Steenhuisen will do next

DA leader John Steenhuisen will be pulling out of the leadership race as the party prepares for its federal congress in a few weeks.

Steenhuisen made the announcement on Thursday as speculation and whispers about his future in the party reverberated across corridors and political circles across the country.

He started by giving an overview of the DA’s success over the years and its impact on the country’s political landscape.

“South Africa today is a better country than it was on the eve of the 2024 elections.”

Steenhuisen quits race

Steenhuisen said, “it’s mission accomplished for me”.

“My term will be remembered for leading the DA, international government and putting South Africa on a new path to prosperity. Now, don’t get me wrong. This is not the end of the road for the DA, and it’s certainly not the end of the road for me,” he said as he confirmed that he would remain as agriculture minister.

“I will focus all of my time and energy, as minister of agriculture, on defeating the most devastating foot and mouth disease outbreak our country has seen.

“It would simply not be fair to the incredible farmers of South Africa for me to spend that time battling back in the worst F&D outbreak ever, on the one hand, while also running around the country on an internal election campaign for the next three months,” he said.

The party faced several crises in recent months while he was at the helm.

New DA leader

On Wednesday, political analyst and North West Professor Andre Duvenhage told The Citizen that the recent event will be “negative” for the DA if Steenhuisen stays on as leader.

“I believe that with a strong new candidate, it will give the DA an advantage. I think the DA would be better served by a strong elective team, and we know they attend the elective conference toward the end of March.

“But the fact of the matter is, I think John Steenhuisen is coming with his own challenges. There were always questions about him, not only from within the party, but also from influential figures around the political party and its leadership. So, I think it is time for John Steenhuisen to end his career as leader of the DA,” Duvenhage said.

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