David Shoebridge has been appointed as the new federal leader of the Greens, with Steph Hodgins-May serving as his deputy, according to Guardian Australia.
The party is set to make a formal announcement in Sydney shortly.
The party’s ten senators and lone MP convened during a pre-planned two-day retreat in Sydney to select the new leadership team, following the shock resignation of Larissa Waters on Monday due to ill health.
The leadership became a three-way race after Shoebridge announced his candidacy on Wednesday morning. South Australian senator Sarah Hanson-Young declared her bid on Tuesday, followed by a joint ticket from NSW senator and former deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi and treasury spokesperson senator Nick McKim.
Shoebridge entered federal parliament in 2022 after over a decade in NSW state politics. He holds the Greens’ defence and foreign affairs portfolios and is known for his forceful presence in parliamentary debates, on social media, and during Senate estimates hearings.
Before entering politics, he worked as a corporate lawyer and then became a barrister specializing in employment law, at one point serving as a Labor branch member in Sydney’s inner west. In the early 2000s, he met hard-left Greens MP Lee Rhiannon, who became his mentor.
Hodgins-May is one of the Greens’ newest members, entering parliament in May 2024 to fill a casual vacancy left by Janet Rice’s retirement.
Under Waters, the Greens supported the government in passing nature laws, including the establishment of a federal environment watchdog, and more recently backed Labor’s changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax. The party also partnered with the Coalition and crossbench in the Senate to force Labor to drop a controversial $5,000 cap for veterans accessing allied health services, and compelled the government to bring forward 20,000 aged care beds.
In a statement released ahead of the leadership ballot, Shoebridge and Hodgins-May said they were “excited by what we can and must do together as Greens.”
“This is the time to build our movement as the home for every Australian who wants action on the climate crisis, a fair return from our resources, a secure home and income, and not to sell out our independence to the US or the 1%.
“We do not seek to reform Labor, but to replace them.
“The answer to the rise of One Nation and the far right is giving people hope and making their lives better with real economic and environmental security. It is as simple as a meal before school, as clear as no new coal and gas, and as challenging as holding back the wave of US billionaire tech bros and their vampire AI data centres.”
Waters revealed she would quit to focus on treatment for kidney disease after her health declined significantly since being elected leader in May last year. She is expected to take medical leave before returning to the Senate.
The party’s new leader will face pressure to adopt a more forceful approach, amid frustrations with Waters’ more moderate style and the party’s inability to exploit growing voter shifts away from Labor and the Coalition.
Former Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather on Tuesday called for the party’s membership to get a vote in the leadership race.
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