There have been some shakeups in Australian politics with Jacinta Price defecting to the Liberals and Greens leader Adam Bandt conceding the seat of Melbourne.
Price had previously sat in the Nationals' party room but made the decision to defect back to the Liberals as she believes it is somewhere she can “contribute meaningfully”.
“I believe I will be more effective in this regard if I am a member of the Liberal Party, especially as the party faces a significant rebuild after Saturday,” she said.
“A rebuild I feel obliged to play a robust part in.”
Nationals MP Kevin Hogan said he was disappointed to hear the news but wished Price all the best.
"She has sat in the National Party room since she joined the parliament three years ago and has been an important part of the team,” he said on ABC’s Afternoon Briefing.
"If she has ambitions to be the deputy Liberal leader, she obviously can't do that within the Nationals.”
After a tight race for the seat of Melbourne, Bandt conceded his seat to Labor candidate Sarah Witty after holding it for 15 years and said he wishes her the best.
“The Greens got the highest vote in Melbourne, but One Nation and Liberal preferences will get Labor over the line,” he said in a statement.
“To win in Melbourne, we needed to overcome Liberal, Labor and One Nation combined, and it’s an Everest we’ve climbed a few times now, but this time we fell just short.”
In a statement, he also thanked the Greens team and his family for helping him along the journey.
“I want to thank the Melbourne community for regularly giving me the highest vote, including this election, and to thank you for the last 15 years and the chance to do some amazing things together,” he said.
The Greens will now need to elect a new leader.
