CANBERRA, May 13 (NNN-AAP) – Sussan Ley, has been appointed leader of Australia’s federal Liberal Party, becoming the first woman to lead the conservative party in its 81-year history, following its worst-ever election result.
Ley, the moderate candidate, who was deputy leader of the party, prior to the May 3 election, today, defeated conservative opponent Angus Taylor, in a party room ballot, for the leadership of the Liberal Party by a margin of 29 votes to 25.
It makes Ley, 63, the first female leader of the federal Liberal Party, since its foundation. She will serve as the leader of the opposition in the 48th federal parliament.
The conservative Coalition, which comprises the Liberal and National parties, suffered a historic defeat at the May 3 election, in which Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese’s centre-left Labour Party won a second term in power in a landslide result.
As of today, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation had declared Coalition candidates as the winners of 42 out of the 150 seats in the lower house of the 48th parliament. It said that, Coalition candidates were leading the vote count in two of the three seats still in doubt.
The Coalition had never previously won less than one-third of lower house seats at an election, since the Liberal Party was founded.
Ley said today that, the party has to “respect” the election result and “reflect with humility.”
Ted O’Brien, who was Dutton’s energy spokesman and one of the key architects of the Coalition’s nuclear plan, won the ballot to become deputy Liberal leader.– NNN-AAP
