Lidia Thorpe, a senator for the Green Party, has left the party and will now sit on the opposition bench and head “the black sovereignty movement.”
Following a disagreement with her colleagues over her hesitation to back the Voice request for constitutional recognition, Senator Thorpe made the choice.
She declared, “This nation has a powerful grassroots black sovereign movement, full of steadfast and determined warriors, and I want to completely represent that movement in this Parliament.”
“I now see that I cannot accomplish it while still a member of the Greens. Now, I won’t be limited by portfolios or accepted party viewpoints and can speak freely on all subjects from a sovereign standpoint.
The fallout has direct repercussions for the Albanese administration since it increases the possibility that it would require three cross-bench votes in place of two to enact legislation.
The government now requires the support of the Greens and one cross-bench vote, such as David Pocock, but going forwards, they will also need another vote, making Tasmanian Independent Jacqui Lambie more crucial.
In order to give the Greens time to determine whether to support the referendum, the Greens party room just decided to let Senator Thorpe vote against the Voice proposal.
In terms of parliamentary votes, it implies that the Labor Government will require more cross-bench votes to enact bills if Senator Thorpe votes against the government on the legislation.
It also comes after Senator Thorpe resigned from her position as leader of the Green Party last year following disclosures that she had dated Dean Martin, the former head of the Rebels bikie group in Victoria, while she was a member of the joint parliamentary committee that looks into bikie gangs.
The Australian parliament doesn’t have authorisation to be here, according to Ms. Thorpe, who also said that her job as an Indigenous woman was to “infiltrate” the Senate.
Lidia Thorpe, a senator for the Victorian Greens, said the Parliament is “illegitimate” and that Australia is a country “founded on a falsehood” last year.
Additionally, Senator Thorpe made waves when she was required to recite the oa