Back John Steenhuisen Afrikaans John Steenhuisen German John Steenhuisen Spanish John Steenhuisen Finnish John Steenhuisen French John Steenhuisen Irish John Steenhuisen Portuguese Стенхёйзен, Джон Russian John Steenhuisen Swedish John Steenhuisen Zulu
John Steenhuisen | |
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| 20th Leader of the Opposition | |
| Assumed office 27 October 2019 | |
| President | Cyril Ramaphosa |
| Preceded by | Annelie Lotriet (acting) Mmusi Maimane |
| Federal Leader of the Democratic Alliance | |
| Assumed office 1 November 2020 Interim: 17 November 2019 – 1 November 2020 | |
| Chair | Ivan Meyer |
| Preceded by | Mmusi Maimane |
| Chief Whip of the Official Opposition | |
| In office 29 May 2014 – 24 October 2019 | |
| Deputy | Jacques Julius Mike Waters |
| Leader | Mmusi Maimane |
| Preceded by | Watty Watson |
| Succeeded by | Jacques Julius (acting) Natasha Mazzone |
| Shadow Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs | |
| In office 1 February 2012 – 6 May 2014 | |
| Leader | Lindiwe Mazibuko |
| Succeeded by | Willem Doman |
| Member of the National Assembly of South Africa | |
| Assumed office 19 July 2011 | |
| Constituency | KwaZulu-Natal |
| Member of the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature | |
| In office 6 May 2009 – 19 July 2011 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | John Henry Steenhuisen 25 March 1976 Durban, Natal, South Africa |
| Political party | Democratic Alliance (2000–present) |
| Other political affiliations | Democratic Party (until 2000) |
| Spouses | Terry Steenhuisen (née Kass Beaumont)
(m. 2014)Julie Steenhuisen (née Wright)
(m. 2000; div. 2010) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Northwood Boys High School |
| Occupation |
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| Signature |  |
John Henry Steenhuisen (born 25 March 1976) is a South African politician who has served as the twentieth leader of the Opposition since October 2019 and has been the leader of the Democratic Alliance since November 2020, having served as the interim leader for one year from November 2019. He was chief whip of the official opposition from May 2014 until October 2019.
Born in Durban, he matriculated from Northwood Boys' High School. Steenhuisen joined the Democratic Party and was elected to the Durban City Council in 1999 as the councillor for Durban North. In 2000, the Democratic Alliance was formed, and he was elected as a councillor of the newly formed eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality in that year's municipal election. He was appointed as the DA's caucus leader in 2006.
After the 2009 elections, he became a member of the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature and was appointed the DA's caucus leader. Soon after, Steenhuisen was elected as the party's KwaZulu-Natal provincial leader, a position he held until he resigned in October 2010, amid an extramarital affair. He joined the National Assembly in July 2011, and he became the Shadow Minister of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs in February 2012 following his appointment by Lindiwe Mazibuko.
In 2014, Steenhuisen was appointed Chief Whip of the Official Opposition by Mmusi Maimane, the newly elected DA Parliamentary Leader and Leader of the Official Opposition. He served as Chief Whip until October 2019, when Maimane resigned as the official opposition leader and party leader. Shortly afterwards, Steenhuisen was elected unopposed to replace him as the Leader of the Opposition. In November 2019, he was elected interim leader of the DA, after he defeated Makashule Gana, a DA MPL in Gauteng. A year later, he was elected leader for a full term at the party's Federal Congress, defeating Mbali Ntuli, a DA MPL from KwaZulu-Natal. He was re-elected to another term as party leader on 2 April 2023.