Larissa Waters steps down as Greens leader after kidney disease downturn

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Larissa Waters has stepped down as leader of the Australian Greens. In a Facebook post, she said a downturn in the chronic kidney disease she has been quietly managing means her doctors have advised a slower pace of life than leading a political party allows. She will take medical leave and return to the Senate as one of the Greens’ two senators for Queensland.

Waters pointed to the party’s wins under her leadership, including the November 2025 overhaul of Australia’s 25-year-old environment laws and the push to split gun safety measures from hate speech laws after the Bondi Beach terror attack. The Greens have also used their Senate balance of power to stall National Disability Insurance Scheme reforms. We look at what her exit means for the party and who holds the numbers in the Senate now.

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