Liberal leadership hopeful Andrew Hastie has ruled out a challenge to Sussan Ley, saying he does not have the support needed to become leader of the Liberal Party. The West Australian backbencher and former soldier made the announcement on Friday, citing a lack of support after consulting colleagues over the past week.
Hastie's withdrawal comes after a meeting with conservative rival Angus Taylor on Thursday. Sources from both camps said this would now leave Taylor clear to challenge at a time of his choosing, with one source describing it as a matter of 'when, not if'. Another senior Liberal called the withdrawal 'the first domino to fall', making the leadership 'open' for Taylor.
However, not all conservatives agree. One conservative Liberal told the ABC that Hastie's decision was 'not a guarantee' that Taylor would mount a spill challenge against Ley. They noted the right faction was 'bruised' by the past week's political machinations, suggesting Hastie's supporters overestimated his backing, partly due to Taylor's backers misrepresenting their position.
Taylor is being supported behind the scenes by former MPs including Alan Tudge and Michael Sukkar, as well as former Prime Minister Tony Abbott. He has not yet lobbied colleagues directly but is understood to be reluctant to challenge next week due to a likely interest rate hike on Tuesday and a desire to pressure the government.
Earlier on Friday, Ley announced temporary arrangements to replace Nationals who quit her shadow cabinet, dividing their portfolios among existing Liberal frontbenchers, including Taylor. She said permanent replacements would be announced next week if the rupture with the Nationals remained unresolved.
Hastie had been positioning for a run in recent weeks, but faced a revolt among his online followers after supporting Labor's hate group laws, branding them 'keyboard warriors'. In his statement, he said he would continue to focus on critical issues like immigration and energy, and work for a strong Coalition government.
