Surprising many inside the party and out, David Shoebridge has been chosen as the new leader of the Australian Greens, with Steph Hodgins-May as deputy.
It’s been a rapid rise to the top for Senator Shoebridge, who’s only been in the federal parliament since 2022, although he was an MLC in the NSW parliament for 12 years from 2010, and prior to that in Sydney local government. Before entering politics he was a lawyer, active in defending workers’ rights and fighting discrimination.
Shoebridge chose to make his first press conference as federal leader back in his old stomping ground, beside the Tree of Knowledge behind the NSW parliament.
The leadership ballot was brought on by the sudden resignation of Larissa Waters, due to health issues, and decided with head-spinning speed by the Greens party room, with David Shoebridge receiving seven votes and former deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi receiving four.
Greens leadership is usually decided by consensus, which has already led to some open hostility to the process and result from unsuccessful candidates, particularly Senator Faruqi, ex-deputy and another former NSW MLC. She and others have called for the leader to be decided by party members. On Instagram she wrote, ‘Without a member vote, we cannot call ourselves a grassroots party.’
So what does Shoebridge stand for?
One of the most adept in the Greens at social media, David Shoebridge has become known in parliament for his ferocious performances in Senate estimates, a place where power of various kinds can be held to account.
He’s adopted strong progressive positions on a number of issues, across multiple portfolios, including AUKUS, corporate tax, the climate crisis and the role of fossil fuel interests in corrupting government, juvenile justice (especially Indigenous deaths in custody), drug law reform, Palantir and big data.
Although he’s based in Sydney, David Shoebridge has demonstrated a clear interest in regional Australia, making multiple trips in recent times to remote NT communities and our own region of Northern NSW, for example.
As an ex-barrister, he’s very fast on his feet, well-prepared and apparently fearless in taking on powerful entrenched interests.
With the drift of all other parties to the right, he’s clear about the need to take up the fight with Labor, the Greens no longer content to be a preference machine for this party which treats Greens voters with disdain at best and more often open hostility.
Like many in his party, Shoebridge is himself a disaffected former member of the ALP, which means Anthony Albanese views him with a special hatred. He also has factional enemies within the Greens, having emerged from the so-called Eastern Bloc under the umbrella of Senator Lee Rhiannon.
A former staffer of one-time fellow NSW Green Jeremy Buckingham responded to news of Shoebridge’s ascension to the leadership last week by saying, ‘Now things are going to get Stalinist.’
Steph Hodgins-May
New federal Greens deputy Steph Hodgins-May brings another dimension to the leadership, coming as she does from regional Victoria. She’s only been in the Senate since 2024, having narrowly failed on a couple of occasions to defeat Labor in the lower house.
Since then her main issue, together with independent Senator David Pocock, has been campaigning for a 25 per cent tax on gas exports. She’s also taken strong positions on climate policy and foreign aid.
Senator Hodgins-May says she was inspired to get involved with Greens politics after witnessing the courage of Bob Brown standing up to then-US President George W. Bush in 2003. Another ex-lawyer, she’s a descendant of farmers and National Party supporters, and has worked for AusAid and Greenpeace Asia-Pacific, having lost her mother in the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.
She says she has no time for ‘incrementalism’.
The Greens leadership change comes at a time of crisis on multiple fronts, both for the party and the country. The loss of lower house seats at the last election, together with defecting members and a vote stubbornly stuck in the mid-teens, has helped sideline the Greens. Meanwhile One Nation goes from strength to strength, helped by Gina Rinehart’s billions and a largely compliant media who have been able to channel the anger of ordinary Australians in Pauline Hanson’s direction.
Now though, with socialism no longer a dirty word, and leaders like Zohran Mamdani and Zack Polanski on the rise overseas, the Greens might have a chance to capture the votes of some of those who have been pushed to the margins.
Much will depend on whether David Shoebridge can balance intellectual abrasion with heartfelt passion. He’s already proven his ability to focus on real issues rather than being distracted by US-style culture wars, but can Shoebridge’s confrontational style cut through at this time, or will he need to find another way to survive what is an extremely hostile political and media environment for the Greens?
The next few months will provide the answer.
Originally from Canberra, David Lowe is an award-winning filmmaker, writer and photographer with particular interests in the environment and politics. He’s known for his campaigning work with Cloudcatcher Media.
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