Two-Thirds Vote Needed to Force Greens Senator Out Amid Misconduct Probe

More than seven Greens party room members would have to vote in a secret ballot before Jordon Steele-John could be forced to leave parliament, a threshold that has stalled the party's response to allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards women. David Shoebridge announced earlier this month that the 32-year-old Western Australian senator would take leave while an independent probe examined the claims, but Steele-John rejected the allegations and denied he had agreed to step aside. Shoebridge says the senator agreed to leave; he also acknowledges he cannot compel him to do so on his own.

The allegations date from 2017 to 2025 and were detailed in a three-page letter sent to Shoebridge calling for an independent investigation, the Nine newspapers reported. Steele-John accused an internal faction of the WA Greens of releasing the letter to the media and playing "nasty political games." He said he spoke publicly because he did not want his silence read as guilt.

Steele-John will not attend the coming week of Senate estimates, when senators question officials about government policy. In a statement issued late on Friday, he said he had explored taking part digitally but "been informed that would also be unacceptable." He said he would instead focus on "the independent and timely investigation I hope is soon commenced by the Greens WA." The senator is the party's disability spokesperson, and the NDIS is due to undergo major changes between now and the end of the decade.

Shoebridge took the helm of the federal Greens earlier this month, and the episode has become his first major test as leader. The party says it treats such matters seriously and fairly. For many supporters inside and outside the party, allowing a federal member accused of misconduct to continue public duties would have been hard to accept, even though no complainant has directly come forward.

A two-thirds vote in the party room, meaning more than seven members, would be required to expel Steele-John. The Greens operate on consensus decision-making, and Shoebridge would need the party room's backing to pursue expulsion. Even if the WA Greens' independent investigation cleared Steele-John, his standing in the party room would be badly damaged.

The Greens WA investigation has not yet commenced, Steele-John said in his Friday statement. He remains a senator for Western Australia and has denied the allegations.