All About Sussan Ley, First Woman To Lead Australia's Liberal Party

Australia's Liberal Party has elected Sussan Ley as its new leader. She is the first woman ever to helm the party in its 80-year history. Ms Ley replaces Peter Dutton, who stepped down after leading the party to its worst election defeat in history.

Many within the party and political commentators blamed the loss on divisive leadership, a chaotic campaign, and hardline "Trumpian" policies that pushed away young and female voters.

Ms Ley, a member of the party's moderate faction, narrowly defeated conservative contender Angus Taylor by four votes, as per ABC news. Her elevation follows the May 3 election in which the Liberal-National coalition was reduced to 42 seats, down from 58, while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's Labour Party soared to a landslide victory, securing at least 93 seats.

Who Is Sussan Ley?

1. Sussan Ley was born on 14 December 1961 in Kano, Nigeria, to British parents. She spent her early childhood in the United Arab Emirates. At the age of 13, she moved to Australia with her parents and older brother.
2. She attended school in the United Kingdom, Queensland, and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).
3. Ms Ley developed a strong passion for flying from a young age. She worked odd jobs to support her dream and earned a Commercial Pilot's Licence, which she still holds. She later worked as an air traffic controller at Sydney and Melbourne airports between 1983 and 1985.
4. In 1985-86, she worked as a commercial pilot and also took on roles of aerial stock-mustering, shearers' cook, and wool and beef farmer across rural Australia. She entered into a livestock and dairy farming partnership near Tallangatta in North East Victoria for 17 years.
5. After her first child turned one, she began university studies. It took her 10 years of part-time learning while raising three children to earn three degrees - a Bachelor's in Economics, and Master's in Taxation Law and Accounting.
6. While still helping manage the farm, she took up a job at the Australian Taxation Office in Albury, eventually becoming Director of Technical Training from 1995 to 2001.
7. In 2001, she joined politics and was elected to the House of Representatives as the Member for Farrer, a large rural electorate in southern New South Wales. She narrowly won her first election by 206 votes, and has since been re-elected seven times.
8. She was the Minister for Health, Sport, and Aged Care in 2016. Ms Ley resigned as Health Minister after using a taxpayer-funded trip to buy an apartment on the Gold Coast. She later apologised.
9. In 2019, she returned to the frontbench as Environment Minister after the Liberal Party's election win under Scott Morrison. In that role, she was taken to court by teenagers and an elderly nun over her climate change responsibilities, though the ruling against her was later overturned.
10. She once served as co-chair of the Parliamentary Friends of Palestine, supporting Palestinian autonomy, but a colleague later claimed she had "seen the light on Israel."