Turnbull defeats Abbott to become Australian prime minister
CANBERRA (AFP) - Australian challenger Malcolm Turnbull ousted Prime Minister Tony Abbott in a party leadership battle Monday, to become the country's next leader just two years after the increasingly unpopular conservative government came to power.
Chief government whip Scott Buchholz said Turnbull, 60, a multi-millionaire former banker, had beaten long-time rival Abbott 54-44 in a sudden ballot among the Liberal Party which heads the ruling coalition.
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop won the contest for deputy leadership of the Liberal Party 70-30, defeating Defence Minister Kevin Andrews.
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