AustraliaABC News & HeadlinesThe mood's changed. The Greens and Liberals aren't chasing the sensible centre
Both the Greens and Liberals have abandoned their post-election pivot to the centre, with new leaders David Shoebridge and whoever replaced Sussan Ley taking a more combative approach.
Albanese promised to be "the adult in the room" and govern from the centre. But is that still the political mood as we enter the last part of 2026?
After their 2025 election losses, both the Liberals and Greens pledged to move to the sensible centre, but 17 months on both parties have new leaders and a more combative stance.
New Greens leader David Shoebridge explicitly rejected incrementalism, saying voters wanted material change, while the Liberals rolled Sussan Ley after her centrist experiment.
With both opposition parties doubling down on the strategies that hurt them in 2025, Albanese's government may find the political centre less contested than expected.
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