leadership spill In Australian politics, a leadership spill (or simply spill) is a colloquialism referring to a declaration that the leadership of a parliamentary party is vacant and open for contest. A spill may involve all or some of the leadership positions (l ...

in the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...

, the party then forming the Government of Australia, took place on 26 June 2013 at 7:00pm AEST.

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Julia Gillard called a ballot for

Leader Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets vi ...

and Deputy Leader of the Labor Party live on

Sky News Australia Sky News Australia is an Australian news channel owned by News Corp Australia. Originally launched on 19 February 1996, it broadcasts rolling news coverage throughout the day, while its prime time lineup is dedicated to opinion-based programs f ...

at 4:00pm, following persistent leadership tensions. She stated that she would retire from politics if she lost the vote, while calling on any would-be challengers to pledge to do the same if they lost. In a press conference held shortly after Gillard's announcement, backbencher and former Prime Minister

Kevin Rudd Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957) is an Australian former politician and diplomat who served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and again from June 2013 to September 2013, holding office as the leader of the ...

announced that he would challenge Gillard, whilst also pledging to step down if he did not win the vote. At the ALP caucus meeting, Rudd was elected

Leader of the Labor Party Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets view ...

, with the caucus voting 57–45 in his favour. Following new leadership election reforms which introduced 50:50 weightage for the party membership and caucus in leadership votes subsequently implemented by Rudd, this marked the last time that the Leader of the Federal Parliamentary Labor Party was elected solely by the caucus.

Background

Despite the previous

on 21 March 2013, at which Gillard was re-elected leader unopposed, tensions continued to remain high. By 10 June 2013, the security of Gillard's position as leader was plunged into doubt following the loss of significant support in the Labor caucus, as well as persistently bad opinion polling that indicated Labor could be left with the low number of 40 seats in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

. ABC News reported that "some former staunch supporters" now held the view that Gillard could not win the upcoming election, and ABC journalist

Barrie Cassidy Barrie Cassidy (born 4 March 1950) is an Australian political journalist, as well as a radio and television host and presenter and commentator for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. He was the long-running host of the Sunday morning pol ...

identified former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd as the only feasible replacement. The political editor of ''

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition, ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964.Bruns, Axel. "3.1. The active audience: Transforming journalism from gatekeeping to gatew ...

'' newspaper, Dennis Shanahan, reported on 10 June that Rudd had been "mobbed" by members of the public in Geelong on 7 June 2013, and that he was "expected to be returned to the ALP leadership". On 26 June, rumours began to spread that supporters of Rudd were circulating a caucus petition calling for a vote to challenge Gillard for the leadership. In an interview with

that afternoon, Gillard told interviewer

David Speers David Gordon Speers (born 9 September 1974 in Inverell, Australia) is an Australian journalist and host of '' Insiders'' on ABC TV. Previously he was political editor at Sky News Australia, as well as host of '' PM Agenda'', '' The Last Wor ...

that she had not seen the rumoured petition, and jokingly called it the "political equivalent of the

Loch Ness Monster The Loch Ness Monster ( gd, Uilebheist Loch Nis), affectionately known as Nessie, is a creature in Scottish folklore that is said to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. It is often described as large, long-necked, and with one or mor ...

". She also said that nobody had approached her to advise they intended to challenge her. Gillard then proceeded to call a leadership election for 7:00pm that evening to end the speculation, declaring that she would retire from politics if she lost, and called on any potential challenger to make the same commitment. Rudd announced in a press conference shortly afterwards that he would challenge Gillard for the leadership, and committed to retiring from politics if he lost. Shortly before the 7:00pm vote, influential factional leader

Bill Shorten William Richard Shorten (born 12 May 1967) is an Australian politician currently serving as Minister for Government Services and Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme since 2022. He previously served as leader of the opposition ...

, who had first come out in support of Gillard in the 2010 and 2012 leadership spills, announced that he would support Rudd as he believed he was the person most likely to defeat

Tony Abbott Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Abbott was born in Londo ...

in the upcoming general election.

Result

102 members of the Labor caucus from the

and the Senate were eligible to vote, with 52 votes needed to win. All caucus members voted and Kevin Rudd won the ballot by 57 votes to 45, therefore becoming Leader of the Labor Party for the second time. Following the result, Deputy Leader

Wayne Swan Wayne Maxwell Swan (born 30 June 1954), often colloquially referred to as Swanny, is an Australian politician who is National President of the Labor Party. He was previously the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia and Deputy Leader of the Labor ...

announced that he would resign his position. Anthony Albanese subsequently defeated

Simon Crean Simon Findlay Crean (born 26 February 1949) is an Australian politician and trade unionist. He was the Member of Parliament for Hotham from 1990 to 2013, representing the Labor Party, and served as a Cabinet Minister in the Hawke, Keating, R ...

by 61 votes to 38 votes, thus becoming the Deputy Leader of the Labor Party.

Penny Wong Penelope Ying-Yen Wong (born 5 November 1968) is an Australian politician who has been Minister for Foreign Affairs (Australia), Minister for Foreign Affairs and Leader of the Government in the Senate (Australia), Leader of the Government in the ...

was also unanimously elected to be Labor's leader in the Senate, with

Jacinta Collins Jacinta Mary Ann Collins (born 4 September 1962) is a former Australian politician who served as a Senator for Victoria from 1995 to 2005 and again from 2008 to 2019. She represented the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and was the party's deputy ...

elected as her deputy.

Summary of changes

Aftermath

Julia Gillard publicly congratulated Kevin Rudd on his victory, and announced her resignation as Prime Minister of Australia. In keeping with the pledge she made before the vote, she also announced that she would not seek re-election at the upcoming general election.

Craig Emerson Craig Anthony Emerson (born 15 November 1954) is an Australian economist and former Australian Labor Party politician. He served as the Australian House of Representatives Member for the Division of Rankin in Queensland from 1998 until 2013. E ...

Peter Garrett Peter Robert Garrett (born 16 April 1953) is an Australian musician, environmentalist, activist and former politician. In 1973, Garrett became the lead singer of the Australian rock band Midnight Oil. As a performer he is known for his signa ...

Stephen Conroy Stephen Michael Conroy (born 18 January 1963) is an Australian former politician who was an Australian Labor Party member of the Senate from 1996 to 2016, representing the state of Victoria. He served as a minister in the Rudd and Gillard go ...

Joe Ludwig Joseph William Ludwig (born 21 July 1959) is an Australian barrister and retired politician. He was a member of the Australian Senate for the state of Queensland from July 1999 to May 2016, representing the Australian Labor Party. Ludwig serve ...

and

Greg Combet Gregory Ivan Combet (; born 28 April 1958) is a former Australian politician and trade unionist. He was Secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions between 1999 and 2007. He was elected member for the New South Wales Federal seat of Ch ...

all also announced their resignations from the cabinet. Gillard submitted her resignation as Prime Minister to Governor-General

Quentin Bryce Dame Quentin Alice Louise Bryce, (née Strachan; born 23 December 1942) is an Australian academic who served as the 25th governor-general of Australia from 2008 to 2014. She is the first woman to have held the position, and was previously the ...

that evening, to take effect the following day. Rudd was subsequently sworn in as Prime Minister for the second time, with Anthony Albanese being sworn in as

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president ...

. On 4 August 2013, Rudd visited the Governor-General and asked her to dissolve parliament and issue writs for an election on 7 September. At the 2013 federal election on 7 September, Rudd led Labor to defeat and resigned as Labor leader.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2013 06 Australian Labor Party leadership spill 2013 elections in Australia Australian Labor Party leadership spills Gillard Government Rudd Government June 2013 events in Australia Australian Labor Party leadership spill

Background

Result

Summary of changes

Aftermath

See also

References