SYDNEY: Australia’s opposition Liberal Party elected as leader on Friday a conservative who lobbied to drop its commitment to net zero emissions, as it seeks to counter an insurgent populist right and rebuild support after a disastrous election loss last year. The Liberals have endured an agonizing existential crisis since their second consecutive defeat by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Labor, torn between centrist factions and right-wingers skeptical of climate legislation and multiculturalism.