2025 Liberal Party of Australia leadership election

2025 Liberal Party of Australia
leadership election

←  2022 13 May 2025

Leadership election

Candidate Sussan Ley Angus Taylor Caucus vote 29 25 Percentage 53.7% 46.3% Seat Farrer (NSW) Hume (NSW) Faction Moderate/Centre Right [1] National Right [1]

Leader before election Peter Dutton Elected Leader Sussan Ley

Deputy leadership election

Candidate Ted O'Brien Phillip Thompson Caucus vote 38 16 Percentage 70.4% 29.6% Seat Fairfax (Qld.) Herbert (Qld.) Faction Unaligned [1] National Right [1]

Deputy Leader before election Sussan Ley Elected Deputy Leader Ted O'Brien

The 2025 Liberal Party of Australia leadership election was held on 13 May 2025 to elect the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia and, ex officio, Leader of the Opposition. The election took place after Peter Dutton lost his seat of Dickson at the 2025 federal election. ^[2] The ballot was won by then-Deputy leader Sussan Ley, who became the first female leader of the Liberal Party. ^[3]

Ley and shadow treasurer Angus Taylor stated in advance that they would contest the leadership. ^{[4] [5]} Country Liberal Northern Territory senator Jacinta Price previously announced her intention to contest the deputy leadership as Taylor's deputy after changing her federal affiliation from the National Party, but did not run after Taylor lost the leadership ballot to Ley. ^{[6] [7]}

Background

2022 leadership election

Main article: 2022 Liberal Party of Australia leadership election

The last Liberal Party leadership election was held on 30 May 2022, a week after then-leader and prime minister Scott Morrison led the party to defeat at the 2022 federal election against the Australian Labor Party led by Anthony Albanese after three terms in government, and subsequently resigned as Prime Minster and Liberal leader. ^{[8] [9]} Incumbent deputy leader and treasurer Josh Frydenberg lost his seat of Kooyong to teal independent candidate Monique Ryan, ^[10] making him ineligible to contest the deputy leadership election. The leadership election was won unopposed by Peter Dutton, the outgoing leader of the house, while the deputy leadership election was won by Sussan Ley, the outgoing Minister for the Environment, also unopposed. ^[11]

2025 federal election

Main article: 2025 Australian federal election

Initial predictions for the 2025 federal election had Dutton poised to lead the Liberal–National Coalition to victory after one term in opposition, ^[12] with the Coalition having taken the lead over Labor in November 2024. ^[13] From March 2025, Dutton's lead in the polls began to reverse, ^[14] largely attributed to the unpopularity of the second Trump administration in the United States; ^[15] the Coalition's campaign rhetoric somewhat mirrored Trump's campaign in 2024, in particular calling for asylum seekers to be detained offshore, cuts to the public sector workforce, and antagonism towards China. ^[16]

In the 2025 federal election, Dutton led the Coalition to a second consecutive defeat, with Labor increasing their majority, ^[17] with the Coalition recording their lowest seat share since 1946, the first election contested by the Liberal Party since their rebranding from the United Australia Party the year prior. ^[18]

Candidates

Leader

Declared

Candidate			Electorate	Faction	Announced	Portfolio(s)
		Sussan Ley [19]	Farrer (NSW)	Moderate/Centre-Right [1]	9 May 2025 [20]	Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party (2022–2025) Minister for the Environment (2019–2022) Minister for Health (2019–2022)
		Angus Taylor [21]	Hume (NSW)	National Right [22]	8 May 2025 [23]	Minister for Industry, Energy and Emissions Reduction (2018–2022) Shadow Treasurer (2022–present)

Declined

• Andrew Hastie – Canning (WA); Shadow Minister for Defence (2022–present) ^[24]
• Dan Tehan – Wannon (Vic); Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship (2022–present) ^[25]
• Tim Wilson – Goldstein (Vic); Assistant Minister for Industry, Energy and Emissions Reduction (2021–2022) ^[26]

Deputy leader

Declared

Candidate			Electorate	Faction	Portfolio(s)
		Ted O'Brien [27]	Fairfax (Qld)	Unaligned [1]	Shadow Minister for Climate Change and Energy (2022–2025)
		Phillip Thompson	Herbert (Qld)	National Right [1]

Withdrew

Candidate			Electorate	Withdrew	Faction	Portfolio(s)
		Jacinta Price [7]	Senator for the Northern Territory	13 May 2025	National Right [1]	Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians (2023–2025)

Speculated

Candidate			Electorate	Faction	Portfolio(s)
		Sarah Henderson [28]	Senator for Victoria	National Right [1]	Assistant Minister for Social Services and Disability Services (2016–2018)
		Melissa McIntosh [28]	Lindsay (NSW)	Centre Right [1]	Shadow Minister for Communications (2025–2025)
		Dan Tehan	Wannon (Vic)	Centrist [1]	Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship (2022–2025)

Declined

• Jane Hume – Senator for Victoria; Shadow Minister for Finance (2022–2025) ^[28]

Endorsements

On 12 May 2025 (one day before the leadership vote), a document that had circulated within the Liberal Party was published by The Nightly , featuring the reported voting intentions of federal Liberal members. ^[29] The document showed Ley with the support of 21 members and Taylor with the support of 28 (including Linda Reynolds, who publicly endorsed Ley), while three members were uncommitted. ^[29] The actual vote saw Ley defeat Taylor 29 votes to 25. ^[29]

Reported voting intentions of federal Liberal members ^[29]

Sussan Ley

• Mary Aldred – MP for Monash (Vic) ^[26]
• Angie Bell – MP for Moncrieff (Qld)
• Andrew Bragg – Senator for New South Wales
• Scott Buchholz – MP for Wright (Qld) (document claimed supported Taylor) ^[30]
• Richard Colbeck – Senator for Tasmania
• Alex Hawke – MP for Mitchell (NSW) ^[30]
• Hollie Hughes – outgoing Senator for New South Wales (publicly endorsed Ley) ^[31]
• Jane Hume – Senator for Victoria
• Gisele Kapterian – candidate for Bradfield (NSW) ^[26] (presumed to have won Bradfield at time of leadership election)
• Maria Kovacic – Senator for New South Wales
• Julian Leeser – MP for Berowra (NSW)
• Melissa McIntosh – MP for Lindsay (NSW)
• Andrew McLachlan – Senator for South Australia
• Leon Rebello – MP for McPherson (Qld)
• Linda Reynolds – outgoing Senator for Western Australia (publicly endorsed Ley; document claimed supporting Taylor) ^[32]
• Anne Ruston – Senator for South Australia
• Dave Sharma – Senator for New South Wales
• Dean Smith – Senator for Western Australia
• Dan Tehan – MP for Wannon (Vic)
• Tim Wilson – MP for Goldstein (Vic)
• Jason Wood – MP for La Trobe (Vic) (document claimed supported Taylor) ^[30]
• Tom Venning – MP for Grey (SA)
• Zoe McKenzie – MP for Flinders (Vic)

Angus Taylor

• Alex Antic – Senator for South Australia
• Wendy Askew – Senator for Tasmania
• Leah Blyth – Senator for South Australia
• Slade Brockman – Senator for Western Australia
• Michaelia Cash – Senator for Western Australia
• Claire Chandler – Senator for Tasmania (publicly endorsed Taylor) ^[33]
• Jonathon Duniam – Senator for Tasmania
• Garth Hamilton – MP for Groom (Qld)
• Andrew Hastie – MP for Canning (WA)
• Sarah Henderson – Senator for Victoria
• Simon Kennedy – MP for Cook (NSW)
• Kerrynne Liddle – Senator for South Australia
• James McGrath – Senator for Queensland
• Ted O'Brien – MP for Fairfax (Qld)
• Matt O'Sullivan – Senator for Western Australia
• Tony Pasin – MP for Barker (SA)
• James Paterson – Senator for Victoria
• Henry Pike – MP for Bowman (Qld)
• Jacinta Price – Senator for the Northern Territory (publicly endorsed Taylor) ^[34]
• Ben Small – MP for Forrest (WA)
• Phillip Thompson – MP for Herbert (Qld)
• Aaron Violi – MP for Casey (Vic)
• Andrew Wallace – MP for Fisher (Qld)
• Rick Wilson – MP for O'Connor (WA)

Uncommitted

• Cameron Caldwell – MP for Fadden (Qld)
• David Fawcett – Senator for South Australia
• Melissa Price – MP for Durack (WA)

Committed for unknown candidate

• Paul Scarr – Senator for Queensland

Not voting

• Terry Young – MP for Longman (Qld) (focusing on election count in his seat) ^[35]

Sussan Ley

List of Sussan Ley endorsements

Federal Liberal members

• Hollie Hughes – outgoing Senator for New South Wales ^[31]
• Linda Reynolds – outgoing Senator for Western Australia ^[32]

Former federal Liberal members

• Warren Entsch – MP for Leichhardt (1996–2007; 2010–2025) ^[27]

Former heads of government

• Nick Greiner – Premier of New South Wales (1988–1992) ^[36]
• Barry O'Farrell – Premier of New South Wales (2011–2014) ^[36]
• Gladys Berejiklian – Premier of New South Wales (2017–2021) ^[37]
• Jeff Kennett – Premier of Victoria (1992–1999) ^[36]
• Shane Stone – Chief Minister of the Northern Territory (1995–1999) and former Liberal Party president ^[36]

Other politicians

• Shirlee Burge – councillor for Edward River ^[38]
• Doug Curran – Mayor of Griffith (independent) ^[38]

Angus Taylor

List of Angus Taylor endorsements

Federal Liberal members

• Claire Chandler – Senator for Tasmania ^[33]
• Jacinta Price – Senator for the Northern Territory ^[34]

Former heads of government

• Tony Abbott – Prime Minister of Australia (2013–2015) ^[39]

Tim Wilson

List of Tim Wilson endorsements

Former federal Liberal members

• Jason Falinski – MP for Mackellar (2016–2022) and former New South Wales Liberal Party president ^[40]

See also

• 2025 National Party of Australia leadership spill
• 2025 Australian Greens leadership election

References

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