Jing Lee announces immediate resignation from SA Liberal party to become Independent MLC
Jing Lee publicly announced her resignation via a statement posted to her social media page. (ABC News: Evelyn Manfield)
In short:
Jing Lee has announced her immediate resignation from the SA Liberal Party.
Ms Lee has relinquished her positions as the deputy leader of the opposition in the Legislative Council, opposition spokesperson for tourism and opposition spokesperson for multicultural affairs.
What's next?
She will serve as an independent member of the Legislative Council for the rest of her term until the next state election in 2026.
A senior member of the South Australian Liberal party has announced her immediate resignation.
Jing Lee has relinquished her roles as the deputy leader of the opposition in the Legislative Council and opposition spokesperson for tourism and multicultural affairs.
In a statement, Ms Lee said she had made the decision after "much consideration".
In a statement posted to her Facebook page on Saturday, Ms Lee said she would serve as an Independent Member of the Legislative Council for the remainder of her term. (Supplied)
"Over the Christmas and new year period, I took the time to reflect on my parliamentary and community obligations and responsibilities, what matter most to South Australians, how I can best represent our community and whether we can do politics differently," she wrote.
"From 10 January 2025 onwards, I will be serving as an independent member of the Legislative Council for the remainder of my current term until the next state election in 2026.
"I still have not decided whether I will contest the 2026 election — I want to continue to have that conversation with the community and stakeholders."
Ms Lee said it had "not been an easy decision" and reflected on the "great honour" it was to be the first Malaysian-Australian elected to the state's parliament 15 years ago.
"I am still as passionate and committed to my community as when I was first elected in 2010," she wrote.
"Continuing to represent our diverse community and industries and working towards a better society and economic prosperity will remain my top priority.
"Parting ways with the Liberal Party like this is not a pleasant occasion. I am hoping to work with the Liberal Party through this transition with respect and humility.
She said the decision would enable her to best serve her constituents.
"It's not about the Liberal Party, it's about the current stage of my political career, where I feel I can better serve the community as an independent," she said.
"I wish Vincent Tarzia MP and the Liberal Party every success in all their future undertakings. Having an effective Opposition working with crossbench members is in everyone's best interest because it makes the government more accountable, pushes the government to do better and re-think its action and responsibility."
Jing Lee (right) apologised to Michelle Lensink (left) for withdrawing from a pairing arrangement ahead of an abortion law vote last year. (Supplied: Facebook)
In October last year, Ms Lee apologised to fellow Liberal colleague Michelle Lensink for backing out of a deal before the upper house voted on proposed changes to abortion laws.
Ms Lensink, who was on long-term sick leave as she battled breast cancer, had formally declared her opposition to the bill before voting occurred.
The pair had arranged to abstain from voting to even the numbers — but Ms Lensink was forced to make a late-night dash to parliament to vote after Ms Lee made "an unthinkable decision under pressure" on the night and reneged on their deal.
Ms Lee said while that was not the sole reason behind her resignation from the party, it did play a part.
"It's not one specific factor … [but] it compounded to my final decision," she said.
SA Liberal leader Vincent Tarzia said he also believed there were "a number of factors" that led to Ms Lee's resignation.
"She's made it very clear that I've been very supportive of her, and I think I have been supportive of her,"he said.
Mr Tarzia said the party were "very saddened" by her decision.
"It's fair to say that I think after 15 years of state politics, it's certainly taken its emotional toll on Jing Lee," he said.
"Jing has been an enormous figure in the multicultural community, always been a support to me, certainly voted for me recently in the latest leadership ballot."
Liberal MPs John Gardner, Jing Lee and Vincent Tarzia on the day of a party room meeting to elect a new leader following the resignation of David Speirs. (ABC News: Che Chorley)
Ms Lee is the latest to announce her intention to leave the Liberal party, after John Gardner and David Pisoni announced their intentions to quit politics at the next state election, as well as the departures of former leaders Steven Marshall and David Speirs and former state director Alex May.
"We will now use this as an opportunity to refocus and also refresh the team as well," Mr Tarzia said.
South Australian Liberal MP Vincent Tarzia said he was looking forward to announcing some changes to the shadow cabinet. (ABC News: Che Chorley)
He said he had a "great relationship" with Ms Lee and described her as one of the "hardest working" members of parliament.
"When I saw her this morning, she was a friend, and she left as a friend. It's a very cordial relationship, professional relationship,"he said.
"She's made it very clear to me, by her doing this that it's no personal reflection on me.
"It's a relentless job, but at the same time, of course, you never want to see a member of your team leaving, and that's why we say with some humility, it's a very sad day."