Senator Larissa Waters has been elected as the new leader of The Australian Greens, after Adam Bandt faced defeat in May's Federal Election, losing his seat of Melbourne for the first time in a decade.
The competition for leadership was reported to be fierce, with what was billed as a three-way race between frontrunners Waters, Mehreen Faruqi, and Sarah Hanson-Young, but Waters was ultimately elected unopposed.
Faruqi was named as deputy leader, Penny Allman-Payne, a fellow Senator for Queensland, as party room chair and Senator Nick McKim stays on as party whip.
Speaking to press after the meeting, Waters said she was ready to give her best to the “big job” of being party leader and called for “politics with heart”.
"I feel so strengthened by the sentiment of the room and by this amazing team. We've got a lot of work to do, because people are really hurting and the planet is hurting, and we need a parliament that actually delivers for people and has the courage and the boldness and the heart to deliver some help to people.
“So I'm calling today for a progressive parliament and a politics with heart. That's what we desperately need. Let's meet people where they're at, and let's actually work to deliver the services and the support that people need and that the planet needs.”
She also challenged Labor to join with the Greens on making this happen and not to ally themselves with the Opposition.
“The Labor Party have a choice. They can work with us, and help people and protect nature, or they can choose to work with the Coalition,” Waters told press.
“They're going to need to pick because they don't have the numbers in the Senate to pass the legislation that they want to work on. So we want the Labor Party to be bold, and we want to help them to fix the problems that people are facing.”
Waters hails from Queensland, was first voted into the Senate back in 2010, and is the second-longest-serving member of the Greens, just behind Hanson-Young, who has served the party since 2008.
Waters has most recently been serving as the Greens party spokesperson for women, and back in 2017 she made parliamentary history when she breastfed her newborn daughter in the Senate chamber.
The Greens gathered for the ballot from midday (AEST) and the announcement came just three hours on, however they waived the official voting process, electing their new leader less formally, as they have done in the past.
Adam Bandt's loss was considered a shock, and the seat is now held by Labor's Sarah Witty, who secured a 52.9% win.
In his concession statement, Bandt said he was “really proud of what I've achieved as leader” and pointed to the One Nation and Liberal votes flowing through to Labor on preference as key to the loss.
After her appointment as leader today, Waters sent her love to Bandt, saying he was missed and hoped to have him back in the party.
“We miss him desperately, and he was a wonderful leader for this party, and all of our love goes to him and his family,” she said.
“We hope to welcome him back. I can't strong arm him just yet, but I intend to, and we intend as a party to continue to grow.”
