Cory Bernardi resigns as a senator for South Australia after 13 years in politics
Cory Bernardi has bowed out of politics, saying goodbye to a 13-year career that was at times marred by controversy.
National
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Cory Bernardi has left politics, bringing his 13-year career to an end and triggering a Liberal preselection battle in his home state of South Australia.
The independent senator handed his letter of resignation to Senate President Senator Scott Ryan this afternoon, bringing his long and often controversial career to an end, effective immediately.
Mr Bernardi was elected as a Liberal, so his former party will fill his casual vacancy and not the Australian Conservatives party he formed in 2017 and disbanded in June 2019.
Senator Ryan said he would be informing the South Australian governor of the vacancy.
I have received a letter of resignation from Cory Bernardi as a senator for South Australia. The resignation takes effect immediately.
— Senator Scott Ryan (@SenatorRyan) January 20, 2020
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In November, Mr Bernardi announced he was bringing his 13-year career to an end, telling Sky News he had “few” regrets.
“The timing is right, I just don’t want to go back to it next year, I feel in a very happy and comfortable place,” he said.
“One of the great things is my integrity is intact. I feel very comfortable with who I am and what I have spoken about, and if I have regrets, there are very few.”
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Once a Liberal, Mr Bernardi broke away from the party in 2017, forming the Australian Conservatives in February of that year.
Mr Bernardi had already set it up as a right-wing activist group in 2016.
“It really is time for a better way – for a conservative way,” he told his colleagues at the time.
But by 2019, Mr Bernardi’s political party was flailing. In June, the senator announced he was voluntarily deregistering the Australian Conservatives with the Australian Electoral Commission, citing a poor result in the 2019 federal election.
Struggling to find support among his right-wing colleagues, who were happy to serve under an already-conservative Scott Morrison-led government, Mr Bernardi remained an independent until his resignation announcement in November.
Despite his years of controversy, Mr Bernardi has maintained his comments “opened up lots of conversations”.
“Other people will define it (my career) how they want,” he said in November.
“If nothing else, I opened up lots of conversations, I remained true to my values and principles. People will make judgments about whether they were right or wrong.”
Mr Bernardi entered parliament in 2006, replacing retired minister Robert Hill.
In July 2018, the 50-year-old said it was a “safe bet” he would retire before the next election.
Originally published as Cory Bernardi resigns as a senator for South Australia after 13 years in politics