Scott Morrison, 50, has been elected as the new prime minister of Australia, putting an end to a week-long political turmoil.
Mr. Morrison will take the place of former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, who is the fourth Australian leader in a decade to be ousted by party infighting.
Morrison did not initiate the challenge but rather supported Turnbull earlier in the week.
Three frontrunners competing for Turnbull’s Prime Ministerial post were Peter Dutton, Julie Bishop and Scott Morrison.
Mr. Morrison defeated his opponent Peter Dutton 45-40. Dutton is the former home affairs minister and is known for hard-line stance on immigration.
The former foreign affairs minister and current deputy leader of the Liberal Party Julie Bishop was eliminated in an earlier vote before the final round.
Mr. Morrison has been serving as the treasurer since 2015 after a year each as the Minister for social services and as the Minister for immigration from 2013. Previously he worked in the tourism industry, including as the Director of the New Zealand Office of Tourism and Sport from 1998 to 2000.
As the new leader of the Liberal Party, Morrison will become the 30th Prime Minister of Australia.
The deputy leader Josh Frydenberg who had been the environment and energy minister under Turnbull.
BY MSEAP Cyber Secretariat (mseap@assembly.go.kr) |
