# Australian Greens leadership transition and policy shifts > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/australian-greens-leadership-transition > Updated: 2026-10-08T04:51:12.000Z. Sources: 25. Developments: 6. Following the resignation of Larissa Waters, David Shoebridge has assumed leadership of the Australian Greens, with Steph Hodgins-May serving as deputy leader. Shoebridge has introduced ambitious policy shifts, including calls to overhaul the US-Australia alliance, remove United States forces from Pine Gap, scrap the AUKUS pact, and nationalize major grocery retailers Coles and Woolworths. The leadership transition has been marked by internal friction. Mehreen Faruqi has criticized the election process and stated her intention to pursue “radical action outside the constraints of the leadership team”. Shoebridge has attempted to mitigate these tensions by characterizing all members of the federal Greens party room as frontbenchers. In response to criticisms regarding the leadership selection process, Shoebridge has pledged to allow party members to participate in the selection of future leaders, moving away from the current system where only sitting federal MPs vote. This move has coincided with a significant surge in membership; the party recorded 884 new members in the week following his appointment. Victorian party leader Ellen Sandell described a portion of this growth as the state branch’s “biggest surge in new members on record”. The party is now utilizing social media to promote policies such as implementing a gas export tax while preparing to target eight lower house seats in the upcoming Victorian state election on November 28. Despite this growth, the Greens' total membership remains significantly lower than that of One Nation, which reportedly reached between 60,000 and 70,000 members. ## Timeline ### 2026-10-08: Australian Greens membership surges under David Shoebridge The Australian Greens saw a surge of nearly 900 new members following David Shoebridge’s election as leader and his promise to give members a say in future leadership contests. 4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/australian-greens-membership-surges-under-david-shoebridge ### 2026-10-05: David Shoebridge leads Australian Greens amid internal unrest New Australian Greens leader David Shoebridge faces internal party unrest and leadership challenges following the resignation of Larissa Waters. 4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/david-shoebridge-leads-australian-greens-amid-internal-unrest ### 2026-10-02: Australian Greens elect David Shoebridge as new leader Senator David Shoebridge has been elected leader of the Australian Greens, with Steph Hodgins-May as deputy leader, following Larissa Waters' resignation. 5 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/david-shoebridge-elected-leader-of-the-australian-greens ### 2026-10-02: David Shoebridge elected Australian Greens leader Newly elected Australian Greens leader David Shoebridge has called for an end to military aid for Ukraine and the removal of US bases from Australia, including Pine Gap. 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/david-shoebridge-elected-australian-greens-leader ### 2026-09-30: David Shoebridge elected as new leader of the Greens David Shoebridge has been elected leader of the Greens, alongside deputy Steph Hodgins-May, as the party seeks to increase its voter share and challenge Labor on cost-of-living issues. 6 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/david-shoebridge-elected-as-new-leader-of-the-greens ### 2026-09-28: David Shoebridge elected leader of the Australian Greens David Shoebridge has been elected leader of the Australian Greens, with Steph Hodgins-May as deputy, following Larissa Waters' resignation due to chronic kidney disease. 19 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/larissa-waters-steps-down-as-greens-leader-due-to-health --- Cite as: Australian Greens leadership transition and policy shifts. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/australian-greens-leadership-transition