Her replacement, Andrew Bartlett announced over the weekend he will quit the Senate at the end of August to focus on campaigning for the Lower House seat of Brisbane.
In a statement Waters said she was thrilled to, “become the first senator section 44’d to return to the seat she won”.
I’m delighted to return to work for Qld! I want to clean up politics so it works for ppl & planet, not corp donors https://t.co/16UwCoLDrM
— Larissa Waters (@larissawaters) June 16, 2018
“I’ve had a year watching politics from the outside and it’s clear that people are fed up with the big parties just doing the bidding of their corporate masters and donors,” she said.
“I want to thank my old friend and esteemed colleague, Senator Andrew Bartlett, for the outstanding work he has done in the Senate representing Queenslanders since he stepped into the role, after I stood down for unwitting dual citizenship.”
Bartlett denied being pressured to step aside, saying his focus was on a concerted Greens’ effort to break through to the House of Representatives.
“The strong swings and successes the Greens achieved in the recent state election in Queensland shows we have a real chance of breaking through in a Lower House seat in the next federal election, but it will take a concerted community-based campaign to do it,” he said.
Bartlett added that he’d be working with Waters over the following months “to ensure the transition occurs with minimal disruption”.
Along with her colleague, Scott Ludlam, Waters’ departure from Parliament triggered an unprecedented domino effect. Over the past 12 months, fourteen politicians have been forced to resign with most awaiting by-elections.
One thing’s for certain though, Larissa Waters’ return comes at a critical time as female representation in Parliament is strikingly low.
In the Senate, women comprise just 29 of 76 seats (38 percent) whilst representation in the Lower House is even worse with women holding just 41 of 145 seats.
We’re pleased to see her back!