Steenhuisen's deputy, Jacques Julius, then served as acting chief whip. Steenhuisen declared his candidacy to succeed Maimane as parliamentary leader and was elected unopposed on 27 October 2019. He formally announced on 28 October that he would run for federal leader of the party. He was elected interim leader of the party on 17 November, defeating Gauteng MPL Makashule Gana. 2020 Federal Congress On 15 February 2020, he declared his intention to seek a full-term as Federal Leader of the DA at the Hellenic Community Centre in Mouille Point, Cape Town. The party was scheduled to elect its new leadership at its Federal Congress in May 2020 but this was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, Steenhuisen suspended all campaign activities. In May 2020, the DA's Federal Council, the second-highest decision-making body, resolved to hold the conference virtually between 31 October and 1 November, a move which some critics denounced as being favourable to Steenhuisen's campaign, as he has a public profile and access to party structures, giving him an advantage. He faced KwaZulu-Natal MPL Mbali Ntuli for the position. As the campaign progressed, he received endorsements from prominent party members, including Western Cape provincial leader Bonginkosi Madikizela and interim federal chairperson Ivan Meyer. On 1 November 2020, Steenhuisen was announced as the new leader of the party. 2023 Federal Congress On 1 November 2022, Steenhuisen announced his intention to seek re-election at the DA's Federal Congress in 2023. Steenhuisen launched his campaign for re-election on 19 November in Cape Town. He told supporters that while things had improved in the DA, there were still challenges. Steenhuisen also conceded that coalitions were diffucult to manage as the party governs four out of the eight metropolitan municipalities and multiple municipalities across the country through coalition governments. Despite the party's ongoing exodus of black leaders and Federal Council Chairperson Helen Zille's strong influence in decision-making, Steenhuisen is considered by political analysts to easily win re-election at the Federal Congress. Tenure Election results Steenhuisen led the Democratic Alliance into the 2021 national municipal elections. He said in an interview with News24 in September 2021: "The DA's core message in this election is not about the ANC. It's about the DA. We are going to be talking with South Africans about what we have to offer. Not just a critique of the ANC, but say, 'The DA gets things done'." On 25 September