Jacinta Nampijinpa Price officially throws her hat into the ring for Liberal leadership job

Jacinta Price will contest the Liberals’ deputy leadership days, endorsing Angus Taylor to take the top job as the pair promised to “get back into the fight” after the party’s landslide election defeat.

Northern Territory Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price will contest the Liberals’ deputy leadership days after she defected from the Nationals, endorsing Angus Taylor to take the top job as the pair promised to “get back into the fight” after the party’s landslide election defeat.

Mr Taylor will face off with current deputy leader Sussan Ley in a secret ballot on Tuesday, with Liberal sources saying both sides had locked in about 20 supporters out of a likely party room of 55 MPs and Senators.

Ms Price ended days of speculation on Sunday when she confirmed her tilt for the deputy role in short statement vowing to take the Liberals back to its “basic values” and “fight for the forgotten people”.

“As I’ve said with respect to my decision to change party rooms, these are not matters which I take lightly, and this decision today brings with it a great deal of responsibility which I fully accept,” she said in a statement on Sunday morning.

Ms Price said there was “no question” returning to the Liberals’ “roots” as a party was “critical right now”.

“If we want to inspire and empower Australians across our country, we must return to these roots – these basic values – that define who we are as a party,” she said.

“We must once more remember and fight for the forgotten people, those on whose shoulders Australian society has been built and still depends. These are the mainstream Australians who have a big contribution to make.”

Ms Price said this made her think of her grandparents, “who were by no means the elite, building their first home by hand with hessian bags and washing their clothes in the creek in Warners Bay, NSW. But they saw a spark, a vision of a brighter future for generations to come”.

Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price will contest the Liberals’ deputy leadership days after she defected from the Nationals. Picture: Gera Kazakov

“My Warlpiri grandparents caught the vision and transitioned from nomadic desert life into community life during the emergence of a modern Australia,” she said.

“They were the original Aussie battlers – the forgotten people. Their courage to grab hold of aspiration with both hands has paved the way for a desert kid like me to put my hand up to lead.

“Like my grandparents, I too see a spark. I see a brighter future for generations to come. I want others to see this future for themselves. That’s what my candidacy for Deputy Leader is all about – a brighter future not just for the Liberal Party, but for all Australians.”

Energy and climate change spokesman Ted O’Brien is also contemplating a run for deputy, though Ms Ley’s supporters said she was not considering any joint tickets and would be happy to work with whoever the party room elected in that position, including Ms Price.

In a video posted to Instagram on Sunday, Ms Price and Mr Taylor appeared together in conversation about their support for each other.

“As you know Angus, I’ve been a fighter all my life, and I think we’re in a really good position to come back from this and come back strong,” Ms Price said.

“You’ve got incredible experience behind you and I’ve had the pleasure of having you as a mentor.”

“We have such passion for this country, for our party and for the Coalition as a whole. We’re a team that’s prepared to go out and fight.”

Mr Taylor replied she was “absolutely right” and called Ms Price a “great inspiration to me”.

“We’ve got to regroup, rebuild and get back into the fight,” he said.

Sussan Ley is also running for the Liberal leadership. Picture: Facebook

Ms Ley released her own video pitch over the weekend, arguing the Liberals needed to “build a new economic narrative” and develop policy offerings to “show everyday Australians that we have a plan to help them and their families get ahead”.

Before the Liberal contest the Nationals party room will meet on Monday for its own vote, with leader David Littleproud to be challenged for the top spot by Queensland Senator Matt Canavan, who last week railed against Ms Price’s decision to leave the. junior Coalition partner.

Mr Littleproud is expected to retain the role, but one MP said they believed his failure to stop Ms Price moving to the Liberal party room and thus stripping the Nationals of their “major-party” status in the Senate – a resources boost granted to parties with at least five Senators – had weakened his position.

Meanwhile the potential contenders for the Greens leadership to replace Adam Bandt, who lost his seat of Melbourne at the election, are shaping up as South Australian Senator Sarah Hanson Young and NSW Senator Mehreen Faruqi, with Queensland Senator Larissa Waters also being pushed by membership as a possible replacement.

Their ballot will be held on Thursday.

Originally published as Jacinta Nampijinpa Price officially throws her hat into the ring for Liberal leadership job