Hastie Rejects Taylor's Deputy Leadership Offer as Ley's Position Stalls
January 24, 2026 — 7:55 pm
Liberal leadership contender Andrew Hastie has turned down a proposal from Angus Taylor to serve as his deputy in a united conservative effort to unseat Opposition Leader Sussan Ley.
According to three sources familiar with the conversation, the MPs spoke on Thursday while Taylor was in Europe, and Hastie was in Perth. The conversation was previously unreported.
Taylor suggested that Hastie could eventually become leader if he served as Taylor's deputy for a period, though the timing was unclear. However, Hastie made it clear that he was being encouraged to run by a group of right-wing MPs and would only be deterred if colleagues actively opposed him, which they were not doing.
Hastie declined to comment on the call, while Taylor and his office were contacted for a response. One source close to Taylor downplayed the discussion about a deputy role.
Hastie's supporters believe he has a clear majority support in the right faction, but Taylor is gaining more support among moderates who, if forced to choose, would prefer him over the more hardline candidate in Hastie.
The two are set to speak again in the coming days to attempt to resolve the stalemate, which benefits Ley and suggests she may remain in a weakened state for a while longer until the right can agree. Taylor's absence from Australia makes it challenging for him to engage in the political maneuvering.
The issue for both candidates is that many moderates, unaligned centrists, and some right-wingers believe Ley made the right moves in taking on the Nationals last week, despite her weakened position after the historic Coalition split.
Critics are using this split to call for a spill, but Ley's allies argue that the rebels have misjudged the unifying impact of Nationals leader David Littleproud's actions.
Under pressure, the opposition leader has been speaking to colleagues, one of whom expressed calm and confidence about the leadership situation, which they feel is being exaggerated by troublemakers.
"There's no sense of worry – quite the opposite," an ally said.
Ley, whose strategy to attack Labor on its Bondi massacre response backfired last week, has been consulting with former Prime Minister John Howard multiple times a day for advice on the crisis with the Nationals.
Ley is not planning to reshuffle her shadow ministry to fill the positions vacated by Nationals until Littleproud announces his unofficial 'shadow cabinet' next week.
Ley's delay is motivated by the desire to maintain the possibility of reconciliation, as some Nationals, including deputy leader Kevin Hogan and others, continue to discreetly discuss reunification with Liberals.
Nationals who want to keep the Coalition together are unwilling to remove Littleproud, which would be a condition for many disgruntled Liberals to reunite.
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