Nationals MP asks colleagues to rally around him as David Gillespie confirms he will also throw his hat in the ring

The New South Wales Nationals MP Michael McCormack has urged his colleagues to unify around him as Barnaby Joyce’s replacement, declaring he is a “fighter” and has “the drive to deliver”.

With Joyce bowing to the inevitable on Friday and confirming that he will quit his leadership positions and go to the backbench after two weeks of ceaseless controversy about his private life, McCormack is considered to be the frontrunner to replace him.

McCormack, who will be backed by social conservatives, made a pitch that he could unify the party after the Joyce turmoil, and would stand up for the interests of regional Australians.

“When water rights were challenged in my electorate, I crossed the floor to get a better deal. When a big American company came knocking to take over GrainCorp, I stood up for our farmers and opposed it,” McCormack said in a statement after Joyce’s resignation.

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“As I said in my inaugural speech to parliament in 2010: I promise not to be silent when I ought to speak.”

While McCormack is the frontrunner, fellow New South Wales National David Gillespie has also confirmed he will throw his hat in the ring when the Nationals meet in Canberra on Monday.

In his pitch to colleagues, Gillespie also positioned himself as a unity candidate, and said he would like to put “new issues” on the agenda such as federal state relations, the GST carve-up, small businesses getting a better deal out of industrial relations, “and the perpetual problem of federation dysfunction”.

“We have so many Council of Australian Governments agendas and there’s always and argy-bargy with mixed responsibilities, mixed funding, we need to really define who’s in charge of what [between the state and commonwealth],” he said.

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It is also possible that Queensland’s David Littleproud, an ally of Joyce and promoted by the former party leader in last year’s ministerial reshuffle, could run.

Victorian Darren Chester – controversially punted by Joyce in the same ministerial reshuffle last year – confirmed on Friday he would not stand for the party leadership, and threw his support publicly behind McCormack.

Chester said the looming leadership transition was an opportunity to “reset the Nationals” and bring the party together after a period of division.

Joyce confirmed he would go to the backbench after weeks of controversy and round-the-clock media reporting about his affair with former staffer and now partner, Vikki Campion, who is pregnant with his child.

The deputy prime minister was publicly excoriated by Malcolm Turnbull for his conduct, and Joyce did not inform the prime minister about his decision to resign in advance of telling reporters on Friday afternoon.

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Instead he told the acting prime minister, Mathias Cormann, of his plans. Asked why he got the news and Turnbull did not, Cormann said: “These are two strong personalities.”

The Nationals deputy leader, Victorian Bridget McKenzie, paid tribute to Joyce, saying there had been no fiercer advocate for regional Australia.

She said voters in regional Australia “were never in any doubt about who he was backing”.

McKenzie said Joyce’s decision was the right one for the National party and the Turnbull government, and his departure would allow the government to focus on its agenda.

She confirmed she would not run for the leadership on Monday morning, and would “not run a running commentary on Monday’s meeting”.

“I like us to have our conversations indoors,” she said.