Latest news with #GreensLeadership
ABC News
15-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Greens to choose new leader
Sabra Lane: The third political leadership contest in Canberra will happen later today, as the Greens choose a new leader after Adam Bandt's shock defeat. The party lost three of its four lower house seats in the federal election, including Mr Bandt's seat of Melbourne, which caught the party by surprise. Political reporter Nicole Hegarty joined me earlier from Parliament House in Canberra. Nicole, the Greens are notoriously tight-lipped about internal matters, but what do we know about who is running for the leadership? Nicole Hegarty: They are indeed, Sabra. We do know three names, however, contesting the leadership for the Greens. They're Sarah Hanson-Young, Larissa Waters and Mehreen Faruqi. All of those are senators of course, because now the Greens, since losing three of their seats, including former leader Adam Bandt, only have one spot left in the House of Representatives, held by second-term member for Ryan in Brisbane, Elizabeth Watson-Brown. So they're the contenders, but as to who has the support and that side of things, no one's really willing to spill the beans at this point. We have to wait and see. Sabra Lane: The party said it will review the Greens' election performance. What were some of the issues? Nicole Hegarty: Well, there were a number of things that were considered as having a feed into this result, one being their opposition to a number of policies, particularly around housing, which they then backed in, but only after a significant delay. The government really hammering that point during the election and throughout the last term as well, arguing that it's better to have some progress rather than no progress on the housing front, an issue that the Greens increasingly were out talking about, and for renters as well, not only homeowners. So that was one thing that is thought to have played into this result for the party. Another is around their stance on Israel-Gaza, how much of an issue that played will be one part of the investigation as part of this review, and also how broad their policy is, whether they moved too far away from their initial roots in being focused on the environment to venture into other policies as well. We did see a bit of a return to more standard topics for the Greens towards the federal election campaign off the back of their loss in the Queensland state election last year as well. We saw the main focus as being health and environment during the federal election campaign, but much to be delved through as to how they came to lose three of their seats, including the leaders, but with a swing of more than 9% against Adam Bandt in his Melbourne seat, which was once safe Greens territory. Sabra Lane: Nicole Hegarty there.
ABC News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Federal politics live: Anthony Albanese debuts new slogan as he credits election win to 'progressive patriotism'
Anthony Albanese has credited his thumping election win to what he calls "progressive patriotism". The Greens will meet later today to decide who will become the party's next leader after Adam Bandt's shock defeat. Follow all of the day's events in our live blog below.
ABC News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Greens to decide next leader in contest between Faruqi, Waters and Hanson-Young
The contest between Greens senators Mehreen Faruqi, Larissa Waters and Sarah Hanson-Young for the party leadership is expected to be "competitive", as the party room readies for a ballot on its future after the shock electoral defeat of Adam Bandt. However, the Greens could still decide their next leader without a formal vote, as it has done in previous contests. Party MPs also expect a close contest for possible co-deputy leader positions in the Greens, with a desire to share some of the intense burdens of party leadership — particularly since two of the contenders have young children. One senator said a close contest after the unexpected loss of Greens leader Adam Bandt was healthy for the party. The Greens were caught off guard by Mr Bandt's defeat in the seat of Melbourne at the federal election. Mr Bandt had told supporters late in the evening of voting day that he expected to hold the seat despite a close count. The former leader maintained that position over the days of counting that followed. But while the Greens point to a consistent national vote, the party acknowledges there are lessons to be learned from it losing three lower house seats at the election, including Mr Bandt's. The party's goal at the election had been to replicate the result in 2010, where the party shared the balance of power in a hung parliament — and some senators suggested the party's tactics must shift in the next term of parliament if it wants to achieve that. Speaking on Sky News on Sunday, Senator David Shoebridge said the party had faced up against powerful special interest groups, and that was a fight it must be prepared for in the future. "When you take on the property industry, and you take on the war industry, and you take on the fossil fuel industry, and you take on the billionaires, and you take them all on at once, it's a bloody hard job," Senator Shoebridge said. He added that win, lose or draw the party would "of course" review its election campaign. The Greens offer a full policy platform, and say it has been a long time since they were simply an environmental party. But with its expansion in parliament last term and a growing youth vote, the party has wrangled with its future direction. The debate among members has been on how hard its stance should be on policy issues, and whether its focus should be as a key check on power, or on pursuing the balance of power itself. While the party's internal dealings are rarely made public, Mr Bandt ended the last term fending off questions overall an apparent strategy shift after the Greens performed more poorly than they expected at the 2024 Queensland state election. The party took a hardline stance on Israel's invasion of Gaza after the October 7 terror attack by Hamas, labelling the Australian government complicit in genocide, and arguing that Australia should impose sanctions on Israel. The Greens also faced months of pressure from the government to back its Housing Australia Future Fund, which the party held up in the senate — ultimately passing the bill once it had secured billions more in funding for social housing. After its disappointing result in Queensland, however, the party shifted on some of its tactics, ultimately backing a number of government bills without amendment and focusing election campaigning on issues of healthcare and climate. While the debate on the direction of the party continues, MPs are not lining up neatly behind candidates based solely on their vision for the party, with personality and leadership styles likely to be factors in who wins the vote. With a more experienced parliamentary team, there is also an expectation that the next term of parliament will be more collaborative and seek to fully engage each MP. Whoever wins leadership, there is a sentiment that the party remains united.
The Guardian
14-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
The Greens are about to choose a new leader. Here's how it works – and who could be Bandt's successor
The Greens will choose a new leader after Adam Bandt unexpectedly lost the seat of Melbourne at the federal election. The party's 11 senators and their sole remaining lower house MP – Elizabeth Watson-Brown, who held the Brisbane seat of Ryan – will decide on Thursday who should become the minor party's fifth federal leader, with whoever claims the top job expected to address the media in the afternoon. Senators Sarah Hanson-Young, Larissa Waters and Mehreen Faruqi are seen as possible successors. The Greens are not alone in turning over a new leadership leaf this week, with the Liberals electing a new leader in Sussan Ley, while Matt Canavan lost his tilt at the Nationals' top job. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email But unlike their major party counterparts, those involved in choosing the new Greens leader are unusually tight-lipped – ignoring or politely declining calls and texts from the media. If there is only one person vying for each of the top positions – leader, deputy and party whip – there must be consensus from the party room for that person to be chosen. If there is not consensus, another challenger would need to put themselves forward. If there is more than one challenger for a role, a secret ballot is held, and the person with the most votes is selected. Sarah Hanson-Young – the longest-serving Greens member in the federal parliament – is among the contenders. The South Australian senator has leadership ambitions, a number of Greens insiders said, and is thought to be canvassing support for the role. The party's environment spokesperson is seen as a pragmatist and able to work with the major parties – as noted by those watching her work with Labor's former environment minister, Tanya Plibersek, on the now-dumped environment protection agency model. New South Wales senator Mehreen Faruqi is seen as another potential future leader, with a strong passion for social justice issues. The party's current deputy leader was outspoken on Gaza in the most recent term of parliament, and is supported by the more activist NSW branches. Faruqi joined the upper house in 2018 after the former NSW Greens senator Lee Rhiannon stepped down upon losing the party's top Senate ticket spot. Faruqi was re-elected as senator at the 2019 federal election and again in 2025. This week, the Greens' First Nations network and the Young Greens both endorsed motions supporting Faruqi as the party's federal leader, despite party members having no official say in the matter. Larissa Waters is seen as the reluctant leader – a long-serving Queensland senator and Senate leader for the Greens who could work as a unifying figure in the same way as Bandt. First elected in 2011, Waters briefly resigned in July 2017 during the parliamentary eligibility crisis due to discovering she held Canadian citizenship. She was re-elected in September 2018. Party insiders say she could be a fresh face who can carefully tread both environmental and social justice pathways for the minor party in the lead-up to the next election. Waters was reticent about her interest in serving as the party's head on Tuesday. 'We've got a process to go through and I won't be making any comments about that,' Waters said, according to the ABC. 'I'm afraid you will just have to wait until Thursday.' Hanson-Young, Faruqi and Waters did not respond to requests for comment. Acting leader and party whip Nick McKim, a Tasmanian senator since 2015, is understood to not be seeking the leadership. The Greens have previously had co-deputy leaders, with Waters having served alongside Bandt, McKim and former senator Scott Ludlam at various times between 2015 and 2022. Since June 2022, Faruqi served as the sole deputy leader to Bandt but a job-sharing arrangement could allow for another pathway forward to reach consensus. Green parties in New Zealand, Canada and the UK have had co-leaders in recent years, though they have no official connection or affiliation with the Australian party. While leadership contests are common in the major parties, it's a process this generation of the progressive party is not familiar with. Since party forefather Bob Brown's retirement in June 2012, there have only been three federal leaders of the Greens – including Bandt. Each time, there's been an informal succession plan in place. A leader makes a decision to retire when another rising star is ready to take the mantle. That first star was Christine Milne, who took over from Brown in 2013 until her retirement in 2015, when Victorian senator Richard di Natale led the party. Bandt was also elected as party leader unopposed in 2020 after Di Natale vacated his Senate seat, leading the party until his surprise defeat to Labor's Sarah Witty. Di Natale, Brown and Milne would not be drawn on who should be the next leader.
ABC News
13-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Senator Larissa Waters won't rule out leadership tilt as Greens claim Ryan
Queensland Senator Larissa Waters won't rule out a tilt at the Greens leadership, as the party claims their first and only election victory. Elizabeth Watson-Brown will now be the sole Greens MP in the House of Representatives after the party failed to reclaim any of its other lower house seats. Asked about whether she would run to become Greens leader after Adam Bandt lost his seat of Melbourne, Senator Waters wouldn't discount it. "We've got a process to go through and I won't be making any comments about that," she said. "I'm afraid you will just have to wait until Thursday." Ms Watson-Brown, who first won Ryan in 2022, will retain the electorate with a two-party preferred swing towards her, despite a drop in her primary vote. She said she was going to "desperately miss" her former colleagues Adam Bandt, Max Chandler-Mather, and Stephen Bates. "It might be a little bit lonely on the floor [of the House of Representatives]," Ms Watson-Brown said. "That is a pretty difficult place. You can be feeling a bit lonely there when you're being screamed at by 149 other people. "There's nobody else now to take that buffer. But I've got to remind people the Greens party room is our strength."
