The race to replace ousted opposition leader Peter Dutton has narrowed back to two, just a day after the only Liberal to win back his seat from a teal independent opened the door to a shock leadership tilt.
Liberal MPs will tomorrow vote in what’s shaping as a title bout between the more moderate deputy leader Sussan Ley and more conservative shadow treasurer Angus Taylor.
The face-off briefly widened to a three-way race when Tim Wilson, fresh off reclaiming the Melbourne seat of Goldstein from teal Zoe Daniel, said he was considering going for the vacant leader’s job, after Dutton lost his own outer Brisbane seat in Labor’s landslide win.
Wilson said he had been approached by party colleagues, including former Liberal MP Jason Falinski, who praised Wilson’s strong campaigning skills in the Australian Financial Review yesterday.
“I am mindful of the National Party’s leadership ballot tomorrow, and that will inform my judgment,” Wilson told The Age on Sunday.
“I have not canvassed any colleagues, but some have reached out to me on their initiative, and Jason Falinski has made his view extremely clear.”
But tonight Wilson withdrew from the race, issuing a call for unity.
“Nationally, I have the firm belief that we can win in three years. Not six. Three,” he wrote on Facebook.
“I won’t be a candidate for leader tomorrow – it’s not my time.
“But I will be giving all my energies to whoever wins, to replicate what we did in Goldstein across our party.”
He didn’t endorse either leadership candidate but threw his support behind a continuation of the Coalition’s controversial nuclear energy policy, along with a focus on addressing inflation and housing affordability.
Nine political editor Charles Croucher had earlier flagged Wilson’s comments as potential manoeuvring to secure a top role in the shadow cabinet.
“There are plenty you speak to from all sides of the Liberal Party that would like to see him come in to the frontbench, be it as an economic portfolio, perhaps shadow treasurer or some other big role,” he told Today this morning.
“It’s a great honour to lead our great party,” Littleproud said after the vote, arguing the leadership challenge was “healthy for our democracy”.
Nationals Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price last week defected to sit with the Liberals and has since announced she is running as deputy leader under Taylor.
