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Scott Ludlam
Co-Deputy Leader of the Australian Greens
In office 6 May 2015 – 14 July 2017Serving with Larissa Waters
Leader	Richard Di Natale
Preceded by	Adam Bandt
Succeeded by	Adam Bandt and Rachel Siewert (acting)
Senator for Western Australia
In office 1 July 2008 – 14 July 2017
Preceded by	Ruth Webber
Succeeded by	Jordon Steele-John
Personal details
Born	(1970-01-10) 10 January 1970 (age 54) Palmerston North, Manawatū-Whanganui, New Zealand
Nationality	Australia New Zealand
Political party	Greens
Alma mater	Curtin University Murdoch University
Website	scottludlam.com

Scott Ludlam (born 10 January 1970) is a New Zealand-born Australian former politician. A member of the Australian Greens, he was a senator in the Australian Senate from July 2008 to July 2017 and served as deputy leader of the Greens. Ludlam represented the state of Western Australia and resigned when it was found that he had been ineligible to sit in the Senate due to holding dual citizenship of New Zealand and Australia.

Early life and education

Ludlam was born in Palmerston North, New Zealand. He left New Zealand with his family aged three and settled in Australia at eight years old. In Western Australia he studied design at Curtin University, and then policy studies at Murdoch University. He worked as a film-maker, artist and graphic designer. In the 1980s after participating in the experiential deep ecology training of Joanna Macy, Ludlam worked for a while as co-editor of the Gaia Journal and assisted in the design of its website. He subsequently became involved in anti-nuclear issues in Western Australia, before becoming increasingly involved in the Western Australian Greens.

Political career

At the 2001 state election, Ludlam was the unsuccessful second candidate on the Greens ticket for the upper house Mining & Pastoral region. From 2001 to 2005, Ludlam worked for Greens state parliamentarian Robin Chapple. From 2005 to 2007, he worked as a communications officer for Australian Greens Senator Rachel Siewert. At the 2005 state election, Ludlam unsuccessfully contested the seat of Murchison-Eyre, obtaining 4.98 percent of the primary vote.

At the 2007 federal election, Ludlam was elected to the Australian Senate, representing Western Australia. His term commenced on 1 July 2008, and he took his place on 26 August with other incoming Senators.

Following the 2013 federal election, it was initially announced that Ludlam had lost his bid for re-election, eliminated by Palmer United Party candidate Zhenya Wang, with his term due to expire on 30 June 2014. However an Australian Electoral Commission recount of votes raised some controversy over the loss of ballot papers, and resulted in Ludlam and Wayne Dropulich of the Australian Sports Party winning the fifth and sixth Senate spots respectively. After the recount, it came to light that there were 1375 missing votes and the High Court of Australia ruled that the recount results were invalid because the number of votes lost far exceeded the margin between candidates. At the 5 April 2014 re-election, Ludlam safely held his seat in the Senate.

Ludlam has been involved in numerous political campaigns, including opposition to uranium mining at Jabiluka and in Western Australia, nuclear weapons, foreign military bases, and support for Aboriginal land rights, peace and disarmament, recognition of climate change, advocacy of fair trade and equitable globalisation, and energy market reform.

After taking his seat in the Senate, Ludlam campaigned against internet censorship, for strengthened protections for public ownership of the National Broadband Network, and for the fair treatment of Julian Assange and the WikiLeaks publishing organisation.

In 2011 he successfully advocated to restore $264 million to the National Rental Affordability Scheme which funded the construction of thousands of affordable rental homes.

A former film maker, artist and graphic designer by trade, Ludlam has employed some communications tools to help with campaigns. He created the Bike Blackspot App, a smart phone application that enabled cyclists to lobby for better bike funding. In 2007, he created a 30-minute documentary on why he believes nuclear energy is not the solution to climate change, titled "Climate of Hope".

At the 2014 Western Australian Senate election the Greens won in excess of a quota with the primary vote increasing from 9.5 to 15.6 percent, re-electing Ludlam.

On 6 May 2015, Ludlam was elected unopposed to serve as Deputy Leader of the Australian Greens, serving alongside Senator Larissa Waters. This followed Christine Milne resigning her leadership of the party.

On 3 November 2016, Ludlam announced that he would be taking a leave of absence to seek treatment for depression and anxiety.

On 14 July 2017, Ludlam resigned from the Senate after it was brought to his attention by barrister John Cameron that he held dual Australian and New Zealand citizenship, rendering him ineligible to hold elected office in the Federal Parliament under section 44 of the Australian Constitution, becoming the first casualty of the 2017 Australian parliamentary eligibility crisis. Ludlam stated that he had previously assumed he lost his New Zealand citizenship when he naturalised as an Australian citizen in his mid-teens. Ludlam's resignation led to a number of MPs and Senators publicly clarifying their citizenship status, and also led to fellow Greens senator and deputy leader Larissa Waters's resignation four days later, after discovering she held Canadian citizenship.

On 7 October 2019, Ludlam was arrested at an Extinction Rebellion protest.

In May 2021 his book, Full Circle: A search for the world that comes next, was published by Black Inc.

References

1. ^ Ludlam, Scott. "Resignation of Senator Scott Ludlam". GreensMPs. Australian Greens. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
2. ABC Q&A: "Panellist: Scott Ludlam"
3. ^ "Parliament of Australia Senator Biography". 2011. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
4. "2005 WA election results". 2005. Archived from the original on 21 February 2001. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
5. "Senate Results 2007: Western Australia". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2007. Retrieved 25 November 2007.
6. Parliament of Australia: Senate: Senate Daily Summary Archived 20 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine, No. 43/2008, 26 June 2008
7. Chan, Gabrielle (2 October 2013). "Greens' Scott Ludlam requests recount after Western Australian senate loss". Guardian. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
8. Griffiths, Emma (4 November 2013). "AEC confirms WA Senate election result, apologises over 1,375 lost ballots". Australian Broadcasting Commission. Retrieved 5 November 2013.
9. "Scott Ludlam Official website". 2007. Archived from the original on 18 August 2008. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
10. Australian Greens: Scott Ludlam
11. Clough, Greg. "15,000 NRAS properties restored in Greens Flood Levy negotiation is welcome news for property investors". Onyx Domain. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
12. Ludlam, Scott. "Bike Blackspot Campaign". Retrieved 1 October 2013.
13. J McAuley (3 July 2007). "Nuclear Power Explained : Climate of Hope : Part 1". Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2016 – via YouTube.
14. Belot, Henry (3 November 2016). "Scott Ludlam takes leave of absence to treat depression, anxiety". ABC News. Retrieved 6 November 2016.
15. "Greens senator Scott Ludlam resigns over failure to renounce dual citizenship". ABC News. 14 July 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
16. "Barrister exposes Greens' Kiwi Senator". The Australian. 15 July 2017. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
17. "Australian politicians born overseas jump to clarify citizenship after Waters, Ludlam bungles". ABC News. 19 July 2017. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
18. "Former senator Scott Ludlam among climate protesters arrested". 8 October 2019.
19. Ludlam, Scott (4 May 2021), Full Circle: A search for the world that comes next, Black Inc (published 2021), ISBN 978-1-76064-083-5

External links

• Media related to Scott Ludlam at Wikimedia Commons
• Website at The Greens
• Parliamentary biography
• Summary of parliamentary voting for Senator Scott Ludlam on TheyVoteForYou.org.au

v t e Anti-nuclear movement in Australia
Organisations and groups	The Australia Institute Australian Conservation Foundation Australian Greens Australian Labor Party Campaign Against Nuclear Energy Conservation Council of South Australia Friends of the Earth Australia Greenpeace Australia Pacific Kupa Piti Kungka Tjuta Medical Association for Prevention of War Mineral Policy Institute Nuclear Disarmament Party Peace Organisation of Australia The Wilderness Society
People	Dorothy Auchterlonie Green David Bradbury Bob Brown Eileen Kampakuta Brown Kevin Buzzacott Helen Caldicott Moss Cass Ian Cohen Michael Denborough Mark Diesendorf Jim Falk Peter Garrett Jim Green Margaret Holmes Jacqui Katona Sandra Kanck Ian Lowe Scott Ludlam Yvonne Margarula Dee Margetts Jean Melzer Kerry Nettle Tilman Ruff Nancy Shelley Jo Vallentine Patrick White Stuart White Eileen Wani Wingfield
Books	Britain, Australia and the Bomb Greenhouse Solutions with Sustainable Energy Maralinga: Australia's Nuclear Waste Cover-up Reaction Time: Climate Change and the Nuclear Option
See also	Australia and weapons of mass destruction Australian Uranium Association List of inquiries into uranium mining in Australia Lists of nuclear disasters and radioactive incidents Nuclear power in Australia Nuclear weapons tests in Australia Olympic Dam mine Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry Renewable energy commercialization Renewable energy in Australia Say Yes demonstrations Uranium mining in Australia Uranium mining in Kakadu National Park

• 1970 births
• Living people
• New Zealand emigrants to Australia
• Naturalised citizens of Australia
• Australian Greens members of the Parliament of Australia
• Members of the Australian Senate
• Members of the Australian Senate for Western Australia
• People from Palmerston North
• Curtin University alumni
• Murdoch University alumni
• 21st-century Australian politicians