Australian Liberal Party Elects First Woman to Lead

Sussan Ley has been elected the new leader of the Liberal Party, becoming the first woman to lead the federal party in its 80-year history. She defeated conservative rival Angus Taylor in a closely contested partyroom vote, securing 29 votes to Taylor’s 25.
The 63-year-old former deputy leader, backed by the party’s moderate faction, pledged to bring a “fresh approach” and “do things differently” as she addressed the nation for the first time in her new role. Her leadership follows the Coalition’s significant electoral defeat earlier this month. Ted O’Brien, formerly the party’s energy spokesperson and a key figure behind the Coalition’s nuclear energy policy, has been elected deputy leader. He won the ballot against Phil Thompson by a margin of 38 votes to 16.