Adam Bandt concedes battle for Melbourne, Peter Dutton accuses him of of ‘changing reality’

Peter Dutton has accused Adam Bandt of trying to spin his election loss in a cutting online post declaring his pride at helping defeat the Greens leader.

Peter Dutton has accused felled Greens leader Adam Bandt of attempting to “change the reality” of his election loss, which the former opposition leader attributed to the Greens’ “appalling treatment of the Jewish community”.

Mr Dutton took to X for the first time since Saturday’s bruising loss in order to contradict Mr Bandt’s claims he lost the seat of Melbourne because Liberal and One Nation preferences had flown to Labor.

“The Greens got the highest vote in Melbourne, but One Nation and Liberal preferences will get Labor over the line,” Mr Bandt said.

“To win in Melbourne we needed to overcome Liberal, Labor and One Nation combined, and it’s an Everest we’ve climbed a few times now, but this time we fell just short.”

Peter Dutton took to Twitter to accuse former Greens leader Adam Bandt of attempting to “change the reality” of his election loss. Picture: NewsWire/ David Crosling

However, Mr Dutton rejected Mr Bandt’s claims.

“No spin by Adam Bandt can change the reality that he, and other Green members, lost their seats because of their appalling treatment of the Jewish community,” Mr Dutton tweeted on Thursday afternoon.

“Australians were rightly disgusted at their behaviour. We were proud to preference the Greens last, helping to ensure Adam Bandt’s loss.”

In his concession speech on Thursday, Mr Bandt thanked “everyone who had the courage to speak up against the invasion of Gaza,” and “spoke out for peace in Palestine”.

“I think as we see events continue to unfold and continue to unfold in the most tragic way, this is a massive moment of humanity, and we have been really proud,” he told media.

“I’ve been really proud to continue to push for a just and lasting peace for the people of Palestine and Israel, which is going to be based on an end to the invasion and an end to the occupation.”

No spin by Adam Bandt can change the reality that he, and other Green members, lost their seats because of their appalling treatment of the Jewish community.

Australians were rightly disgusted at their behaviour.

We were proud to preference the Greens last, helping to ensure…

— Peter Dutton (@PeterDutton_MP) May 8, 2025

Bandt’s tribute to wife in concession speech

Earlier on Thursday, Mr Bandt officially conceded the race for Melbourne, ending his 15-year hold on the inner-city electorate.

While the seat was called in favour of Labor’s Sarah Witty on Wednesday, the party continued to hold out hope with about 15,000 ballots still unaccounted for.

Mr Bandt, who is the second party leader to be ousted after Saturday’s federal election, confirmed his defeat on Thursday during a press conference in Melbourne.

He stood beside his wife Claudia, and team, and chose not take questions from the media.

“A short time ago I called the Labor candidate for Melbourne, Sarah Witty, to concede, congratulate her and wish her all the best as the next member for Melbourne,” he told reporters.

He attributed his loss to an electoraate redistribution, which pulled in more Labor voters, and said many constituents had “shifted their votes to Labor to keep Dutton out”.

Greens leader Adam Bandt officially conceded the seat of Melbourne on Thursday, speaking to journalists alongside his wife Claudia. Picture: NewsWire/ David Crosling

Mr Bandt also thanked his constituents and party room colleagues and commended the party for its action on same-sex marriage, climate legislation and getting dental into Medicare for children.

He also called on Labor to be bolder on environmental action and tackling inequality, or risk losing what he termed “purple” seats - “where Labor MPs owe their political life to the Liberals’ preferences”.

“The government now can’t blame any independent senator for not making reforms – the only thing stopping getting dental into Medicare, stopping new coal and gas mines or rebalancing housing tax breaks is the government itself,” Mr Bandt said.

“If the government doesn’t use its big majority to start actually cutting climate pollution and tackling Australia’s massive inequality crisis, watch for a big swing at the next election and see those purple seats go Green.”

Adam Bandt blamed the defeat on shifting electoral boundaries and voters preferencing Labor over the Greens. Picture: David Caird/ NewsWire

Mr Bandt was first elected to represent Melbourne in 2010 and has been party leader since 2020. Picture: NewsWire/ Valeriu Campan

While Mr Bandt choked up while speaking about his wife Claudia, who he described as “most brilliant political minds that I know”.

“Not only could I have not done this without her, we’ve done it together, and the amazing, amazing effort that you put in, the toll that it’s taken, and the work that you’ve done has helped change the country,” he said.

Mr Bandt was first elected in 2010, became deputy leader of the Greens two years later and had led the party since 2020.

In this campaign he has posed with giant toothbrushes and hosted DJ-ing events with influencer and former reality TV star Abbie Chatfield.

Following Mr Bandt’s concession, the Greens’ presence in the House of Representatives has been reduced to the single seat of Ryan held by Elizabeth Watson-Brown despite the party securing its biggest national vote in history.

Mr Bandt had previously set expectations sky high ahead of Saturday’s poll, with claims the minor party could both retain their four seats and pick up another five – two in Melbourne, one in regional NSW, one in Western Australia and one in South Australia.

Originally published as Adam Bandt concedes battle for Melbourne, Peter Dutton accuses him of of ‘changing reality’