Hanson-Young to Run as Greens Pick New Leader by Thursday
Sarah Hanson-Young has confirmed she will run for leader of the Australian Greens.
The vacancy follows Larissa Waters's resignation to focus on treatment for kidney disease. Waters told Greens MPs on Monday she would quit the leadership. The Guardian
The new leader will be picked at a two-day party retreat in Sydney. The decision is expected by Thursday at the latest.
Deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi, defence spokesperson David Shoebridge and Hanson-Young are the frontrunners. Treasury spokesperson Nick McKim could also stand. Hanson-Young is the Greens' longest-serving federal MP.
The vote will be a secret ballot of MPs this week, according to The Sydney Morning Herald. The party room — the Greens MPs who get a vote — has 11 members. Adam Bandt, Max Chandler-Mather and Stephen Bates lost their seats at the 2025 election.
The names will be familiar. Faruqi, Waters and Hanson-Young all contested the leadership when it was last decided in May 2025, according to the ABC.
The broader context here is the maths. Eleven votes. Up to four contenders. No big electoral college or membership ballot to hide behind. Two days in Sydney gives MPs time to test combinations, sort deputies and portfolios, and avoid a split that lingers.
In my view, the choice is the usual one after a poor election and a sudden resignation, just faster. The party needs someone who can hold a smaller room together, manage Labor and the crossbench, and front the media within days. Experience offers steadiness. A fresh face offers change. Talk of frontrunners tells you something, but Canberra counts are rarely settled until the door closes.
