Greens elect David Shoebridge as new party leader after Larissa Waters steps down

The Greens have elected David Shoebridge as the party’s new leader after Larissa Waters stepped down on Monday evening citing health issues.

The NSW Senator secured the party room ballot to replace its outgoing leader on Wednesday over hopefuls Sarah Hanson-Young and Mehreen Faruqi.

In a statement ahead of the meeting of 11 Greens senators and MP in Sydney to choose a leader, Senator Shoebridge had said was partnering with Senator Steph Hodgins-May on a joint ticket to refresh the party’s direction.

“We do not seek to reform Labor, but to replace them,” he said.

A former barrister and longstanding NSW State MP for 12 years, Senator Shoebridge had transitioned to Federal Parliament at the 2022 election.

Senator Shoebridge received six primary votes to defeat Senator Faruqi’s three. Senator Hanson-Young received two votes.

First-term Victorian Senator Hodgins-May was elected deputy leader with six votes after she put up her hand alongside WA Senator Jordan Steele-John with two votes and Tasmanian Senator Vanessa Bleyer with three.

Speaking at his first press conference as leader on Wednesday, Senator Shoebridge thanked Senator Waters for her service — which he pledged to build on with Senator Hodgins-May as a “fresh, new, strong face” of the party.

“I want to pay enormous tribute to the work of Larissa. She took on the leadership of the Australian Greens in challenging circumstances, and bloody hell, she rose to the occasion, led with compassion, led with principle, showed what collective leadership can do,” he said.

In outlining his new direction for the party, Senator Shoebridge focused his first remarks on the economic strain Australians were under and the need to remove “the dead politics” of Labor and the Coalition which he claimed was failing to “meet the moment”.

Senator Shoebridge went on to describe his leadership as a “moment for the Greens to fill the vacuum that has been left by the Labor Party”.

“People are desperate for material change. They don’t want another meaningless message being delivered by some Labor hack that they know isn’t going to change their lives,” he said.

“Families anxious as they’re pushing their supermarket trolley down the aisle, wondering if they’ll be able to afford their basic groceries when they get to the checkout.

“We have a national housing crisis. We are also going to meet the climate crisis. This summer could potentially be the mother of all El Ninos.

“We know the Greens need to seize this moment — because politics demands it of us.”

Treasurer Jim Chalmers hit back at Senator Shoebridge’s comments about replacing the Labor party on Wednesday after the announcement.

He insisted Labor would continue to “play the cards that we’re dealt in the Senate” and “engage in good faith” with the Greens.

“I’m told that he was particularly focused on the Labor Party in his introductory remarks,” Dr Chalmers said.

“I think it’s really important that we focus on the risks posed to workers and to our economy by One Nation, the Liberal Party and the National Party.

“They will continue to be the main risk posed to our economy and to our workers.”

Senator Shoebridge vowed to build a movement against politicians he accused of working for “corporate donors or some US tech billionaire — or worse still, some foreign government with their militarisation plans for this country”.

He also took a swing at One Nation claiming leader Pauline Hanson was only “feeding off people’s quite legitimate anger” by offering “short-term sugar hits” that were untested.

Senator Hanson-Young was elected uncontested as the manager of Green’s business while Tasmanian Senator Nick McKim was elected uncontested as the Whip.

Queensland Senator Penny Allman-Payne was elected uncontested as the Party Room Chair and then defeated Senator Bleyer to also secure Deputy Whip.

After defeating Senator Faruqi, who has been a vocal voice on the Israel-Palestine conflict, Senator Shoebridge was also asked about the party’s direction on the foreign issues — to which he talked up the Greens “really strong connections” with the Australian Jewish community.

“We have really strong ... working alongside Jewish Australians who are fighting a genocide, who are speaking up for core values that they hold dear,” he said.

Senator Faruqi posted a statement to social media shortly after the vote to express her disappointment that the party “chose another direction”.

“I am disappointed the party room chose another direction and know many others will feel the same way,” she stated.

“Globally, people are struggling against genocide, wars, surging fascism and the twin crises of capitalism making working life too expensive and climate breakdown threatening our future.

“This struggle calls for bold politics and radical action.”

In a veiled swipe and hint of future agitation, Senator Faruqi claimed she didn’t contend for her former position as Deputy Leader because “on reflection, I believe I can best play my part in that action outside the constraints of the leadership team”.

She added a call for reform of the party’s governance to “set a timeline for one member, one vote”.

“Without a member vote, we cannot call ourselves a grassroots party,” Senator Faruqi said.

Following her shock resignation on Monday, Senator Waters will remain in the party and told reporters on Wednesday she would be “very proud to be a humble backbencher” as she looks after her health.

“It’s been a wild ride. While I’m proud of the time that I have spent leading this incredible team, I am very proud to be a humble backbencher and a senator for Queensland after I take some medical leave,” she said.

While a strong performer and prominent voice on government accountability and the justice and defence portfolios, Senator Shoebridge has doesn’t have the household name recognition of Senator Hanson-Young.

Senator Hanson-Young has a larger online presence with 557,000 followers across Facebook, Instagram and X — compared to Senator Faruqi’s 262,900 and Senator Shoebridge’s 206,400 over the three platforms.

His portfolio recently expanded to include digital rights with a focus on artificial intelligence and has been a leading voice on regulation of AI models and data centres.

Senator Shoebridge’s elevation means One Nation is now the only party with a female leader, alongside Labor’s Anthony Albanese, Liberals’ Angus Taylor, and Nationals’ Matt Canavan.