Greens Leader Adam Bandt makes election pitch to voters

Greens Leader Adam Bandt has ruled out making a deal with the Coalition or requesting a ministerial position from Labor if the election hands either party a minority government.

Rhiannon Down and Sarah Elks

Greens leader Adam Bandt and Senator Senator Larissa Waters at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NewsWire/Martin Ollman

4 min read

8:30PMMarch 28, 2025.

Updated 10:59PMMarch 28, 2025

Greens leader Adam Bandt has ruled out requesting a ministerial position from Labor if the election results in a hung parliament, as he delivered a pre-election pitch to voters built on spending billions more on healthcare and hardline climate policies.

Declaring that “minority government is coming” shortly after Anthony Albanese called a federal election for May 3 on Friday, Mr Bandt repeatedly urged voters to back the minor party to “keep Peter Dutton out” and “get Labor to act”.

Mr Bandt said the Greens’ campaign would be built on a push to have dental visits covered by Medicare, make GP visits free, cap rental increases and wipe all student debt.

Mr Bandt nominated five electorates he believed the Greens were “within reach of winning”, including Perth, currently held by Labor MP Patrick Gorman, Sturt in SA, held by Liberal MP James Stevens, and Richmond in NSW, held by Labor MP Justine Elliot.

He also pointed to Wills and Macnamara in Victoria, which are held by Labor MPs Peter Khalil and Josh Burns, respectively, as seats that the Greens are close to claiming. “It is crystal clear that Peter Dutton will be very bad for this country, making the climate and the housing crisis worse,” Mr Bandt said in Canberra on Friday.

“But it’s also clear that Labor won’t act unless they’re pushed. Now, last time there was a minority parliament, the Greens got dental into Medicare for kids.

“This time we want to get it in for everyone.”

Greens Leader Adam Bandt at a VOTE event hosted by media personality Abbie Chatfield. Picture: NewsWire/Nadir Kinani.

Mr Bandt will front a major public rally in Brisbane on the first full day of campaigning on Saturday, telling voters that backing the three Greens MPs in the Queensland capital could be the only way to keep Peter Dutton out of the Lodge and instead elect the “most progressive government Australia has ever seen”.

The Greens leader will appear at the rally alongside Griffith MP Max Chandler-Mather, Ryan MP Elizabeth Watson-Brown, and Brisbane MP Stephen Bates, who won their seats at the 2022 federal election.

Mr Chandler-Mather, the minor party’s housing spokesman who is fending off an active challenge from Labor to win back Kevin Rudd’s old electorate, invited supporters to the “Keep Dutton Out Rally” in South Brisbane.

“Holding our seats in Brisbane could be the difference between a Dutton minority government with (Kennedy MP Bob) Katter, or a Labor minority government negotiating with the Greens to deliver things like dental into Medicare, tackling the housing crisis, no new coal and gas, and taxing billionaires,” he said.

Mr Chandler-Mather holds Griffith on a margin of 10.5 per cent versus the LNP, but Labor’s candidate Renee Coffey is on the march. The ALP’s internal national candidate tracking system recorded Ms Coffey as the most active single candidate nationwide in the seven days to Friday afternoon, personally knocking on 691 doors and making 38 phone calls.

Labor's Griffith candidate Renee Coffey. Photo: Glenn Hunt

The LNP candidate for the Greens-held seat of Ryan is barrister Maggie Forrest. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

But Labor insiders acknowledge it will be difficult to unseat Mr Chandler-Mather, whose national profile has soared since he took on Anthony Albanese over public housing, appeared alongside the banished CFMEU at public protests, and condemned what he called Israel’s “genocide” in Palestine.

Mr Bandt said the Greens’ platform of cost-of-living measures would be funded by multinationals through a new tax, and rejected suggestions that he could seek a position in the ministry of a new Albanese government.

“A ministerial position is not our priority,” he said.

“What the Greens want at this election is to keep Peter Dutton out and get Labor to act.

“This is a real chance by voting Greens to get some real outcomes for people.

“Like enough of the tinkering around the edges. Tinkering around the edges of the housing and rental crisis still leaves people skipping meals just to pay the rent.

“We’ve got people missing dentist and doctor appointments because they can’t afford it. People need real help now.”

After the Greens repeatedly used its numbers to block legislation in the Senate during the last parliamentary term, Mr Bandt declared that “Greens pressure works” and he would use a minority government to force Labor to adopt the party’s health and cost-of-living policies.

Mr Bandt indicated that Labor had not reached out to him about forming a minority government, reasoning that “all the way up to election day, they’re going to say that they want to win”.

“Everyone, the opposition, is going to say that they want to win,” he said.

“But I expect that the government would respect the parliament that the Australian people choose.

“I would be astounded if anyone ignored the will of the Australian people and the parliament that they choose.”

Mr Bandt denied suggestions that he and the Opposition Leader were on the same page when it came to a push to divert exported gas to the domestic market rather than opening new gas fields, attacking Mr Dutton over his energy policy.

“Peter Dutton has made it clear that his dangerous nuclear plan means keeping coal and gas in the system for longer, more climate pollution and opening new gas fields,” Mr Bandt said.

“So everything for Peter Dutton is just the fig leaf for making the climate crisis worse by opening new coal and gas mines, like it is Peter Dutton’s agenda.

“Peter Dutton is channelling Donald Trump – it’s drill, baby drill.”