New Liberal Party Leader John Pesutto ‘confident’ he’ll one day be Premier

After the Liberals’ third successive election loss, new leader John Pesutto believes he can turn the party’s fortunes around.

New Liberal Party leader John Pesutto doesn’t plan on being in opposition for long.

Come November 2026, he expects to be Premier.

It’s a big call given the Liberal Party has just suffered it’s third successive election loss.

But Pesutto says he’s confident he can turn the fortunes of the party around.

It will mean repairing the party’s organisational arm, boosting membership, reconnecting with the electorate and uniting his parliamentary colleagues.

Pesutto shrugs off the herculean task with a smile.

Does he really believe he will be Premier in just four years?

Absolutely.

“I believe I will, and I’m confident I will,” he says.

“We have faced three resounding election defeats in a row. We just don’t want to lose any more. We want to win again.

“We have to have to work together to build a winning psychology that we can win. It is possible.”

New Liberal Party leader John Pesutto, pictured with wife Betty, vows to turn around the bad fortunes of the party and is ‘confident’ he’ll be Premier in four years. Picture: David Crosling

He might represent the blue ribbon electorate of Hawthorn, but Pesutto is no blue chip Liberal.

Born and raised in Traralgon, his working class parents emigrated from post-war Italy in the early 1960s.

It is their working class background he credits with fuelling his interest in the Liberal Party.

“It just instilled in me a sense of get up, have a go, make the most of it,” he says.

“That’s why I was drawn to the Liberal Party.”

Pesutto rejects the assessment that his party is facing an existential crisis, or that it has become irrelevant.

“The broad philosophy of the Liberal Party hasn’t changed,” he says.

“It still is about an enterprising culture, reward for honest effort, the importance of the rule of law as a means of security, that government will always do the best by its people, the importance of supporting families and communities, prudential management of the people’s money, being conscious of good government.

“Those broad philosophical foundations have never changed for me.

“The challenge always is, how do we apply those principles when issues arise?”

It is a balancing act the party has failed to master as it struggles to cater for the needs and wants of opposing ideologies among its membership.

Moderate, centrist views are too often at odds with the more extreme right wing views of the party.

Pesutto rejects any idea the party needs to lurch further to either the left or right to once again secure government.

He believes he can temper frustrations of his more conservative colleagues with an open door policy.

He will have to: 16 of his colleagues this week voted against his leadership in a ballot he won by a single vote.

New leader of the Victorian State Liberal Party. John Pesutto and his wife Betty. Picture: David Crosling

While former leaders Matthew Guy and Michael O’Brien battled perceptions of not engaging enough with colleagues, Pesutto promises a consultative approach.

But he does accept more needs to be done to attract younger voters and embrace multiculturalism. He credits attracting the millenials to his own campaign success.

“One of my primary aspirations for my leadership is to tell all Victorians, that whoever you are, the Liberal Party can be a voice for you.

“We believe in opportunity. We believe in providing people security, a government that works fairly for you. Opportunity. inclusiveness, engagement … that’s going to be a hallmark of my leadership.”

Pesutto also says the party has to do more to develop good policy, and offer a genuine plan for a better Victoria.

He says the party is battling a “skills vacuum” in its organisational arm that will also need addressing if its stocks are to improve.

“We know there are so many things we can and must do better,” he says.

The policies the Liberal Party took to the election will all undergo review before Pesutto recommits to them.

He doesn’t necessarily think the Suburban Rail Loop is a good or bad idea, but is concerned about it’s price tag and potential cost blowouts.

He’s worried about integrity, the health crisis, management of major infrastructure projects and the state’s record debt.

But he says he wants to do more than simply sit on the sidelines and shout criticism.

One thing Pesutto knows for certain is he’s got four years to do his best.

His shock election loss in 2018 is stark reminder that his political future isn’t guaranteed. But he says it has taught him how to fight back and win.

“For me, there’s a lot of unfinished business.”

Andrews exceeds ‘2018 Danslide’ victory

Daniel Andrews has exceeded his 2018 “Danslide” election victory success, with his party officially claiming 56 seats.

Victorian Labor on Friday evening claimed the seat of Bass, with incumbent MP Jordan Crugnale confirming she had retained the seat.

For thirteen days Ms Crugnale had been locked in a tight battle with Liberal candidate Aaron Brown.

Many Labor sources predicted Bass would fall back to the Liberals, who held the seat prior to the 2018 election.

Ms Crugnale took to social media to thank her community for getting her over the line.

“It was always going to be close with or without the redistribution and I have never once taken anything for granted,” she said.

“It’s been a privilege and honour to work for and with our community and together we have achieved so much.

“Always more to do – let’s get cracking!

“To be re-elected for another term is beyond amazing, humbling and I am streaming with tears of gratitude.

“I will apply that same determination, grit and fight, be that constant (loud) voice at our government table and build on the momentum we have already started and keep at it – we need and deserve a whole heap more.”

It’s the final lower house seat to be called, with the exception of Narracan, which had its vote deferred after the death of Nationals candidate Shaun Gilchrist.

And it comes after Emma Vulin, a former staffer in the Premier’s electorate office, was named winner of the newly created seat of Pakenham on a two-party preferred basis by 307 votes.

It brings the total number of seats won by Labor to 56 – one more than when Mr Andrews was returned for a second term of power in 2018.

Monash University political expert Dr Zareh Ghazarian said the 2022 result came as a shock to many analysts.

“To say it’s a good result for Labor is an understatement,” he said.

“This is an extraordinarily strong win for the Labor Party. While its primary vote went back, the number of seats it won increased.

“2018, when it was described as a Danslide, was seen as a real high point for Labor, and the traditional thinking would be that a government, going for its third term, would shed support.

“It went completely against those sorts of expectations.”

Dr Ghazarian said despite predictions of a hung parliament or minority government, the polls had “consistently” put Labor in an election winning position.

“It’s a big win and really the spotlight now is on the Coalition, in particular the Liberal Party,” he said.

“And now the question is: How will they be able to turn around their fortunes?

“The Liberals spent a lot of time talking about themselves, internal disunity, and they seemingly couldn’t fill Victorians with the confidence that they would be an effective government.”

—Mitch Clarke