Very ugly and disgraceful stuff about John Steenhuisen

John Steenhuisen has faced many controversies in his political career, ranging from an extramarital affair to allegations of misusing party funds.

Steenhuisen had a successful political career, rapidly rising from a Democratic Alliance (DA) councillor to provincial leader, Chief Whip, and federal leader.

He became known as a skilled parliamentary debater, championing the DA’s opposition to the ruling ANC.

His role changed after the DA joined the Government of National Unity, when he became Minister of Agriculture.

However, this period proved turbulent. He faced severe criticism of his handling of the foot-and-mouth disease, which weakened his political standing.

In April 2026, Geordin Hill-Lewis replaced Steenhuisen as the Democratic Alliance’s federal leader, with the agreement that Steenhuisen will remain Minister.

However, the problems surrounding Steenhuisen’s leadership in the Agriculture Ministry became a problem for the party.

Last month, Hill-Lewis asked President Cyril Ramaphosa to reshuffle his cabinet, which included removing Steenhuisen as Minister of Agriculture.

Steenhuisen was appointed Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, a significant demotion.

He was not happy and gave an explosive interview with News24 in which he slated Hill-Lewis and accused former DA leader Tony Leon of underhanded dealings.

Leon responded, saying that there were many controversies about John Steenhuisen, including “very ugly stuff which was disgraceful”.

Leon shared this information during an interview with News24 editor-in-chief, Adrian Basson, on the ‘On The Record’ podcast.

“There were a lot of controversies about John. There was stuff about the credit card and various default judgments, very ugly stuff,” he said.

John Steenhuisen’s controversies

Considering Leon’s accusations, Newsday looked at some of the controversies during Steenhuisen’s political career.

The first big controversy was in 2010, when he resigned as KwaZulu-Natal provincial leader amid the disclosure of an extramarital affair.

The Witness reported that he had an affair with DA media officer Terry Beaumont, who was married to then DA provincial director, Michael Beaumont.

His biggest challenges came during his tenure as Minister of Agriculture. He faced scrutiny over his handling of a foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak. 

His department wanted to fight for state control over the distribution of FMD vaccines against the wishes of farmers, who suffered at the hands of the disease.

This culminated in a legal battle in which the Pretoria High Court delivered a scathing ruling against Steenhuisen and his department.

Critics and opposition parties cited this crisis as a primary policy failure, which ultimately contributed to his removal from the Agriculture portfolio.

Before he was removed, an email from his special advisor, Jana le Roux, was leaked online. This email poked fun at a concerned farming group, FMD Response SA.

This leak further damaged the Agriculture Ministry’s relationship with the South African farming community.

Steenhuisen also faced scrutiny within the DA over the alleged misuse of party funds and outstanding personal credit card debt.

The internal scandal added pressure to his standing in the party, which contributed to losing his leadership and ministerial positions.