Barnaby Joyce support for potential leadership rival

Barnaby Joyce has backed Nationals deputy leader Bridget McKenzie for a lower house against Cathy McGowan.

Deputy Nationals Leader Senator Bridget McKenzie and Deputy PM Barnaby Joyce leaving Canberra. Picture: Kym Smith

Barnaby Joyce has backed Nationals deputy leader Bridget McKenzie for the lower house seat of Indi against Cathy McGowan two days after his public falling out with the high-profile independent MP.

The former Nationals leader said yesterday he would support Senator McKenzie running for the northeastern Victorian seat if the ambition was to improve the party’s numbers in federal ­parliament.

Mr Joyce also told The Australian he had talked on the floor of the parliament with Ms McGowan on Tuesday after she threatened to withdraw her support for the government if Nationals leader ­Michael McCormack were to be deposed.

Mr Joyce told Ten Eyewitness News yesterday he was not collecting leadership votes but would take the top job if asked.

The former leader has accused Ms McGowan of being two-faced and used regional media to savage her after she made her weekend threat about pulling support from the government.

The threat was linked with suggestions Mr Joyce was seeking a leadership role.

“Cathy, my door is always open if you wish to discuss anything with me that could be of such weight that you would make a public statement like you did about me, please feel free to see me first,” Mr Joyce told The Border Mail.

“Alternatively, please desist with the gushy charade that is part of the disingenuous patter that you partake every other time we meet.’’

The Australian photographed Mr Joyce and Ms McGowan deep in conversation in parliament on Tuesday as the Nationals circle to take over the seat.

Ms McGowan is expected to quit before the next election, opening the way for Senator McKenzie to contest the seat.

The Australian revealed yesterday that Senator McKenzie was moving her electorate office nearly 300km to Wodonga in Victoria’s northeast.

It is the chief population centre in Indi.

Senator McKenzie denied yesterday she was having a tilt at the Nationals leadership but refused to rule out being a candidate in the seat, which has a margin of 4.1 per cent over the Liberals.

Mr Joyce said: “The role of any political party is to win seats; if anybody suggests anything else they are misleading you.”

“The National Party should have absolute interest in trying to win Indi. The person who sits in the highest pantheon of political parties is the one who wins back seats.

“So if Bridget wants to do that, then of course she is to be supported in that approach.”

Victorian Nationals MP Andrew Broad also yesterday backed Senator McKenzie running.

“Everything that Bridget puts her mind to she does well. Bridget is a class act,” he said.

Mr McCormack did not say whether he supported Senator McKenzie running for Indi or whether he expected her to contest, but said: “As leader of the Nat­ionals and Deputy Prime Minister, I look forward to helping Nationals candidates across the country to put our record of delivery and advocacy to regional people and their communities at the next ­election.”

Ms McGowan did not respond to a request for an interview.