Ivan Meyer

Ivan Henry Meyer (born 28 March 1962) is a South African politician and party member of the Democratic Alliance. He is currently serving as the Western Cape Provincial Minister of Agriculture and a Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament. He was elected interim Federal Chairperson of the Democratic Alliance on 17 November 2019. He has also been serving as the First Deputy Federal Chairperson of the Democratic Alliance since his election at the 2015 Democratic Alliance Federal Congress.

Previously, he served as the Western Cape Provincial Minister of Finance, Western Cape Provincial Minister of Cultural Affairs and Sport and Western Cape Provincial Minister of Social Development. Meyer was the Provincial Leader of the Democratic Alliance in the Western Cape from 2012 to 2015.

Family and personal life

Meyer served as the chief director of Provincial Training in the Corporate Services Directorate of the Western Cape Provincial Administration. He was a Senior Lecturer in Public Policy and Local Governance at the University of Stellenbosch. He has published various works in the fields of education, housing, local government and public administration. Many of his poems were published in the 2012 Afrikaans anthology, Teater van ‘n Velore Tyd.

He is married and has children.

Political career

In May 2009, Meyer was elected to the Western Cape Provincial Parliament. He was inaugurated as a Member on 6 May 2009. The following day, 7 May 2009, Premier Helen Zille named her Provincial Cabinet and appointed Meyer to the post of Provincial Minister of Social Development. He was sworn in on the same day.

He was elected as one of three Deputy Federal Chairpersons of the Democratic Alliance in July 2010.

He served as Provincial Minister of Social Development until September 2010, when Zille reshuffled her Provincial Cabinet and announced that Patricia de Lille, the Leader of the Independent Democrats, would succeed Meyer. Meyer was appointed Provincial Minister of Cultural Affairs and Sport, succeeding incumbent Sakkie Jenner.

In October 2012, he declared his candidacy to replace Theuns Botha as Provincial Leader of the Western Cape. Botha had announced his intention to retire as leader, and Meyer was elected unopposed on 13 October 2012 at the party's Provincial Congress. He resigned as a Deputy Federal Chairperson on the same day.

In May 2014, he was re-elected to a second term as a Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament. Premier Helen Zille appointed him to the post of Provincial Minister of Finance. He took office on 26 May 2014.

Meyer announced in April 2015 that he would stand down as Provincial Leader of the Western Cape Democratic Alliance. He was succeeded by Patricia de Lille. He announced at the party's Provincial Congress that he would run for one of the positions as the three Deputy Federal Chairpersons of the Democratic Alliance. He was elected on 10 May 2015 at the National Democratic Alliance Federal Congress as the first of three deputies.

Meyer was re-elected as the first of three Deputy Federal Chairpersons of the Democratic Alliance in April 2018. He is currently serving alongside Mike Waters and Refiloe Ntsekhe.

In May 2019, newly-elected Premier Alan Winde appointed Meyer as Provincial Minister of Agriculture.

In October 2019, Meyer announced his candidacy for the post of interim Federal Chairperson of the Democratic Alliance. The post became vacant after party veteran Athol Trollip resigned. He faced Nomafrench Mbombo and Khume Ramulifho for the position. Meyer won the election.