Liberal leader David Speirs has quit the top job in South Australia, declaring he has "had a gutful" after facing weeks of speculation over his future.
After releasing a statement on Thursday announcing he was stepping down, Mr Speirs arrived alone for his final media conference as leader, declaring he would not take questions and planned to "sail off into the sunset".
"It's not easy being leader of the opposition, and doing the job for two years and four months has certainly taken its toll on me and it's taken its toll on my family and my friends," he said.
"I've seen speculation based on speculation based on nothing over recent weeks emerge in the papers and the Twittersphere and the like and, to be honest, I've just had a gutful."
Flinders University political analyst Rob Manwaring said pressure had been mounting on Mr Speirs in recent weeks.
He said there had been a change in his political fortunes in March, when the Liberals lost former premier Steven Marshall’s seat of Dunstan to Labor.
“His exit is a combination of media and political pressure, with most of this political pressure having come from his own ranks of the famously divided Liberal Party,” Dr Manwaring said.
Mr Speirs became the party leader in April 2022, replacing Mr Marshall after Peter Malinauskas led Labor to a landslide victory.
The Liberals have served just one term in office in SA in the past two decades with Labor otherwise reigning supreme.
Mr Speirs said he would officially step down as leader at a joint partyroom meeting on Monday, after he had “made a fairly good attempt at consolidating the party, uniting the party and moving it to the future”.
“It's extremely easy to throw rocks at the leader of the opposition and those who are supporting the leader,” he said.
Dr Manwaring said it was unusual for political leaders to call time on their tenure.
“The timing is a critical factor for the opposition with a full 18 months to re-establish the party’s credentials, choose a replacement leader and focus on the huge policy task awaiting them if the Liberals are to be seen as a genuine contender for government," he said.
He expected the party would try to find a “safe pair of hands” and moderate John Gardner was likely to be front runner, with Vincent Tarzia also in the mix.
“Rising stars amongst the Liberal ranks are few and far between,” Dr Manwaring said.
Mr Speirs said he didn’t have the energy for a leadership “that quite frankly, in the current circumstances, I just don't want to pursue anymore”.
He said he would continue to serve as the member for Black and intended to contest the March 2026 election.
