Littleproud talks down byelection chances as leadership rivals circle
National leader David Littleproud has predicted his party could finish last behind One Nation, the Liberals and an independent in a by-election in the county seat of Sussan Ley, vastly downplaying expectations as murmurs of leadership re-emerge in the country party.
In an interview on this masthead Inside Politics The leader, under pressure, denied splitting the Coalition in January to blow up Ley’s leadership.
Littleproud advised commenters to “cool their jets” Poll showing national vote in low single digits While One Nation is ahead of the Coalition in regional areas, he says National votes are only relevant for small parts of the country, as opposed to the major parties.
He also suggested that Hanson, who was condemned in the Senate this week for asking whether there were “good” Muslims, failed to express his message but was not the leader of a racist party.
The loss of coalition votes to Hanson on the right and independents on the left will be highlighted when voters in the NSW seat of Farrer are asked to choose Ley’s replacement in the coming months.
When asked about the three main candidates running in the national election, Littleproud said he was being sincere when he said the special election would be difficult.
“I think it would be very difficult for us to poll in front of any of these,” he said.
The Nationals held the seat for 17 years until 2001, when Ley won the seat following the retirement of former National leader Tim Fischer. Before Fischer, the seat was always in Liberal hands.
In 2001, when Ley won, the National Party received 23 per cent of the primary vote but the party has not contested the seat since.
“We haven’t been there in 25 years. It’s been a Liberal seat since it was founded in the 1940s, 25 years ago we were under Fischer,” Littleproud said. “People are angry about having to go to the polls in Farrer. That’s always difficult for the side of politics that caused this.”
a little proud easily fended off leadership challenge From rogue Colin Boyce after the Coalition split over the party’s decision to oppose Labour’s post-Bondi hate crime laws. Boyce instigated the leak to force a credible candidate like Michael McCormack or Matt Canavan to raise his hand.
Littleproud still retains majority support in the party hall, but a growing number of his senior colleagues have formed the view that he is unable to lead the party in the long term, with four well-placed sources in the party speaking on condition of anonymity.
MPs fear Littleproud will do very serious damage to himself and the party during the Coalition split in January; this was the second in nine months. There is no imminent move to oust him, but MPs are watching the Farrer byelection and the party’s polling situation, waiting for a trigger point.
Canavan reshaped his behavior and strategy and made himself a more reliable choice to lead the party.
The ardent right-winger led the fight against net-zero emissions targets and for years acted as a rebel, voting against Coalition policy. He has been treated more disciplined lately, and in an interview with this masthead in November he was offered to return to the front row. This was seen by his colleagues as Canavan being ready to launch a serious leadership challenge.
Canavan challenged Littleproud after the May election, but this was seen by his colleagues as a tactic to pressure Littleproud to introduce net zero, rather than a serious attempt to eliminate Littleproud.
Two others who may be considered include former leader McCormack and Gippsland MP Darren Chester; but the latter is unlikely to gain sufficient support as it is seen as too moderate. Senator Bridget McKenzie is another option.
When asked about the possibility of the National Team being handed over to Canavan or McKenzie if they fail to make progress on One Nation, Littleproud rejected the suggestion.
“I’m relieved. I’m comfortable in my own skin,” he said.
Several National MPs told this imprint that Littleproud was not in favor of reforming the Coalition when the parties met again in early February.
At a meeting in a party room at the time, around 10 National MPs spoke in favor of rejoining, while eight were largely opposed, although some MPs were difficult to categorise. The minority group consisted of McKenzie, deputy leader Kevin Hogan and front-runner Ross Cadell. Littleproud remained cautious but was not seen by his colleagues as advocating reform.
Asked if he was a minority, Littleproud said he did not comment on discussions in the party room.
“That’s the beauty and the ugliness of democracy. Sometimes, if you’re on the wrong side, you accept it, move on and make it work,” Littleproud said.
Politicians have described the leader of the National Party as someone who runs the federal party like a chairman who allows the board to meet, rather than acting as the final decision-maker.
Reflecting on the Coalition split that ultimately led to Ley’s sacking, Littleproud said “this was not an act of malice” and reiterated his view that the National Party had not been given due process to debate Labour’s hate speech legislation.
Ley, who has a strained personal relationship with Littleproud, dismissed three National MPs who voted against the bill in the Senate, challenging what the Liberals believed was the agreed Coalition position.
Littleproud insisted the National Party had been “badly treated” and denied that they had broken shadow cabinet solidarity because the final bill was never formally signed by the shadow cabinet.
Asked why the pioneers submitted their resignations if they did not believe they had breached the contract, he said: “It was out of respect. It was out of respect for Sussan.”
Littleproud’s statements contradict what the leaders of the National Team in question did at the time. At the time, McKenzie sent Ley a letter offering to resign “in accordance with long-standing custom”, while Sky News’ Cadell said: “I cannot commit the crime if I am not prepared to do the time.”
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Paul Sakkal is the chief political correspondent. It has previously covered Victorian politics and won the Walkley and Quill awards. Reach him securely on Signal @paulsakkal.14Connect with: X or email.
