The Democratic Alliance (Afrikaans: "Demokratiese Alliansie") (DA) is a South African political party and the official opposition to the ruling party African National Congress (ANC). The current leader of the party is John Steenhuisen, who was announced as the new leader on 1 November 2020 after the party's Federal Congress. He had previously acted as the interim leader of the party from November 2019 to November 2020 when the then party leader Mmusi Maimane resigned Helen Zille is chairperson of both the Federal Council and the Federal Executive, the highest decision-making structures of the party. The party is broadly centrist, and has been attributed both centre-left and centre-right policies. It is a member of the 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.