New Greens leader David Shoebridge says ordinary party members will have a voice in choosing the party’s next federal leader. He has promised a conversation across every branch before anyone makes that decision.
“You absolutely should have a say in the leadership for the Greens,” Shoebridge said in a social media video captioned “your say on Greens leadership.” He added: “The good news is Steph [Hodgins-May] and I are gonna make this happen.”
A Vote Now Held Behind Closed Doors
The Greens party room currently picks the federal leader, as do the Liberal and Nationals parties. Labor takes another path: it uses both a party-room vote and a vote by its membership.
Shoebridge didn’t commit to a specific model. He described the process as “a conversation we’re going to have right across the Greens. Every state and territory, hundreds and hundreds of branches, thousands and thousands of members, because members want to be engaged in this.”
Earlier in the week, when he announced his leadership bid, Shoebridge said he supported members having a say. Mehreen Faruqi, unsuccessful in her own leadership candidacy, also called for members to have input after the party-room vote. The push for change, then, has come from both the winning and losing sides of the contest.
The party rules set the timing. Shoebridge said the change would happen “before we make the next decision on the federal leadership.” Under Greens rules, that decision follows every federal election. The membership discussion and any change would therefore happen during this term of parliament.
Victoria Braces for More Rain
Far from Canberra, Victorians faced the immediate effects of storms and flash flooding. Significant rainfall continued across much of the state.
Melbourne’s Melbourne (Olympic Park) measuring station recorded 47.8mm of rain from 9am on Thursday. The State Emergency Service received more than 200 calls for help, including six water rescues.
David Crock, a senior meteorologist with the Bureau of Meteorology, said Melbourne’s total marked its highest daily rainfall since April 2024. His warning about the days ahead was blunt. “There is much more to come,” Crock said.
What Forecasters Expect
Rain was forecast to continue on Friday and Saturday. A flood watch covered catchments across much of central and eastern Victoria. Conditions were expected to ease on Sunday as the low-pressure system moved offshore.
Why This Matters:
The stories share a theme: who gets heard, and who answers when pressure builds. Opening Greens leadership to members would widen participation in a decision the party room now makes alone. That’s a change Shoebridge and Faruqi both support, though they haven’t settled on a model. Flooding also highlights the work public emergency services do. More than 200 calls to the SES in a single day, six of them water rescues, show how much people rely on that collective response. With more rain forecast and a flood watch covering much of central and eastern Victoria, demands on those services may continue. From this perspective, both stories turn on whether public institutions, political or practical, remain accountable and responsive to the people they serve.