Greens leader Richard Di Natale says he won’t be standing down after party’s by-election loss

RICHARD Di Natale has rejected suggestions he should stand down after the Batman by-election loss, but says party members who leaked damaging information to the media should be sacked.

THE federal Australian Greens leader has rejected suggestions he should resign after blaming internal sabotage and “big Labor” for the party’s by-election loss in the Melbourne seat of Batman.

But Richard Di Natale does admit his party needs to do better after Greens candidate Alex Bhathal was defeated by former ACTU boss Ged Kearney on Saturday.

Asked if he would resign over the loss, Senator Di Natale said “no”.

“We had a big Labor machine against us, corporate money, the significant support of the union movement — it was always going to be tough,” he told ABC radio on Monday.

“It’s very difficult to run a campaign when you’re not just fighting a machine like that but you’re also fighting some of your own people.”

Ms Bhathal’s campaign for the inner Melbourne seat was rattled when documents outlining an internal complaint against her lodged by a number of Greens branch members were leaked to the media.

Tough times. Greens Leader Dr Richard Di Natale (right) speaks to supporters at the Greens election night party. Picture: AAP Image/Ellen Smith

On the ground in Batman, Senator Di Natale had argued to voters that the matter had been dealt with and that Ms Bhathal had the support of the majority of branch members.

Another internal review is now underway into how the leak occurred.

“Those people who are found to be responsible for leaking and undermining our candidate need to be expelled,” Senator Di Natale said.

The leader said obviously the Batman result wasn’t the one the party had hoped for.

The Greens were initially confident of their prospects in the marginal seat, which they almost snared in the last federal election.

“We need to get better,” he said.

Ms Kearney told ABC radio on Monday that Labor won because it listened to the electorate.

The Greens told people what the election was going to be about, she said, but Labor ‘waited, listened’ before focusing their campaign on health, jobs and public transport.

This was Ms Bhathal’s sixth run for the federal seat.

The Liberal party did not run a candidate in the by-election, which was called after sitting Labor MP David Feeney resigned over his dual-citizenship.