South Australia July to December 2024

South Australian Politics had a lively second half of 2024. Dominating the period were drug charges levied against former Opposition Leader, David Speirs, following his resignation from the Liberal Leadership. This created a major headache for newly minted leader Vincent Tarzia, whose party lost the by-election for Speirs' seat of Black in a decisive result. Additional signs of tumult within the Liberal Party came in the form resignations of key moderate figures within the party, Federal Senator Simon Birmingham and state Deputy Leader John Gardner—adding further credence to claims of increasing right faction domination over the state party. A further controversy across the period was the introduction of the Termination of Pregnancy (Terminations and Live Births) Amendment Bill 2024 by Liberal MLC Ben Hood which proved divisive throughout the population, parliament, and Liberal Party. Aside from controversies and machinations surrounding abortion and the Liberal Party, another landmark in the period was the state's Voice to Parliament body delivering its first annual report. Meanwhile, the Electoral Districts Boundaries Commission delivered a relatively unremarked map of electoral boundaries for the 2026 State Election. On the wider policy front, Treasurer Stephen Mulligan unveiled a larger than expected budget surplus, whilst the Malinauskas Government still faces pressure on its core issue of ambulance ramping and policing pay and numbers. Despite these policy challenges, the Government pushed ahead with significant reforms to “ban” political donations and publicly fund elections.