• Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Local History
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • About Us
  • Subscribe
  • Read Our Newspapers Online
    • Read the Latest Western Port News
    • Read the Latest Mornington News
    • Read the Latest Southern Peninsula News
    • Read the Latest Frankston Times
    • Read the Latest Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News
  • Competition
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Trending
  • Catch of the decade
  • Season on the line for Seagulls
  • Pythons face an uphill battle, Redlegs stumble
  • Ketch blown ashore in Dromana
  • Early morning hit
  • Boxing world mourns loss of a champion
  • Successfully navigating the path of anxiety
  • Ryman abandons Mt Martha centre
Facebook Twitter
MPNEWSMPNEWS
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Local History
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • About Us
  • Subscribe
MPNEWSMPNEWS
Home»Latest News»Politics peninsula-style
Latest News

Politics peninsula-style

By Keith PlattDecember 13, 2021Updated:December 15, 2021No Comments4 Mins Read
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email
  • Despi O’Connor
  • Claire Boardman
  • Surbhi Snowball
  • Zoe McKenzie

THE Mornington Peninsula is facing possibly the biggest ever change to its political landscape.

None of the familiar faces of multiple past elections will be contesting next year’s federal or state polls.

Chris Brayne, first-term Labor MP for Nepean, is the only current MP on the peninsula who will be contesting the election.

First-up for voters (possibly as early as March) to decide will be the federal seat of Flinders, left vacant by the retirement of Greg Hunt, who has held it for the Liberal Party for 20 years.

The Liberal candidate will not be officially endorsed until early next year, but the frontrunner favoured by Mr Hunt is Zoe McKenzie, a former adviser to former trade minister Andrew Robb, an NBN director and board member of lobby group Committee for Mornington Peninsula.

Ms McKenzie says she is “stepping back [from her own business] over the summer” to seek Liberal Party preselection.

She has also “ceased” her roles on various boards, including the Committee for Mornington Peninsula.

The Labor Party has endorsed Surbhi Snowball as its candidate for Flinders while Voices of Mornington Peninsula on the weekend announced it would back Claire Boardman and former Mornington Peninsula Shire mayor Cr Despi O’Connor is standing as an independent.

Cr O’Connor, a teacher, announced her decision to stand after being ruled out (from a short list of six) from being backed by the Voices group.

To clear the way for campaigning, the group’s choice, Ms Boardman, has resigned as deputy public health commander of the state health and human services department’s infection prevention and control COVID-19 team.

Ms Snowball, Labor’s candidate, has a background in small business, including banking and agriculture.

While long held by the Liberals – former defence minister Peter Reith  “handed the baton” to Mr Hunt two decades ago – Mr Hunt’s margin has been whittled down to 5.6 per cent.

Threats to the peninsula’s physical landscape through climate or planning regulation change are likely to figure strongly in candidates’ campaigns.

Coincidentally, Mr Hunt’s father Alan Hunt, is credited with being an architect of the green wedge, seen as one of the peninsula’s greatest protections against over-development.

Although the state election is not until November, the Liberal Party has already preselected candidates for the seats of Hastings and Mornington.

Perhaps the biggest shock to peninsula political watchers came last week when Chris Crewther was chosen as the Liberal candidate for Mornington over the incumbent, David Morris, who has held the seat since 2006.

Mr Crewther was elected to the federal seat of Dunkley in 2016 after the resignation of 20-year incumbent Bruce Billson but lost to Labor’s Peta Murphy in 2019 after one term.

Mr Crewther failed to gain his party’s preselection for Dunkley this year (won by criminal lawyer and Australian Survivor guest Sharn Coombes) but defeated Mr Morris in an 80 to 60 vote in his bid to move to the state seat.

Labor seems set to choose television fishing show presenter and close associate of the Premier Daniel Andrews, David Kramer, as its Mornington candidate.

The Committee for Mornington Peninsula’s executive officer, Briony Hutton, has been preselected as the Liberal candidate for the state seat of Hastings, left vacant by the retiring Liberal MP Neale Burgess.

She will be up against Cr Paul Mercurio, choreographer, media personality and foodie.

The state and federal elections could also affect the balance of power within Mornington Peninsula Shire Council.

Cr O’Connor will this week take leave of absence from the council to begin campaigning as an independent for Flinders in the federal election.

The focus would then be on her colleague Paul Mercurio, if chosen by Labor in Hastings, to follow her example and also step down from the council.

The Liberal Party has yet to select its candidate for the state seat of Nepean, held for Labor by Chris Brayne since 2018.

Suggested contenders for the seat held by Liberal Martin Dixon from 1996 until his retirement in 2018 are Elizabeth Woolcock and David Burgess.

First published in the Mornington News – 14 December 2021

Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

Related Posts

Council unable to stop sex industry expansion

August 8, 2022

Shire tracks state poll promises

August 8, 2022

Orange Door to safety opens at Hastings

August 2, 2022

Call for action on housing crisis

August 1, 2022
Add A Comment

Comments are closed.

Weather
Aug 9, 2022 - Tue
Mornington, Australia
11°C
clear sky
clear sky
0 m/s, SE
62%
769.57 mmHg
tue08/09 wed08/10 thu08/11 fri08/12 sat08/13
sky is clear
10/7°C
overcast clouds
11/10°C
light rain
11/11°C
light rain
14/10°C
light rain
12/9°C
Peninsula Essence Magazine

Click here to read

July 25, 2022
Peninsula Kids Magazine

Click here to read

May 26, 2022
Council Watch

Shire ‘committed’ to aged care

August 8, 2022

Shire not forced to drop aged care services

August 1, 2022
State Elections 2022

‘Justice’ for animals and climate

August 8, 2022

Peta Murphy wins second term in Dunkley

May 23, 2022

Shire accused of being off track with pledges

May 17, 2022
Interview

All aboard for murder mystery

July 25, 2022
Property of the Week

14 Lynch Court, Mt Martha

July 26, 2022
100 Years Ago This Week

Ketch blown ashore in Dromana

August 8, 2022
Contact
Street: 63 Watt Road, Mornington, 3931
Mailing: PO Box 588, Hastings, 3915
Menu
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Local History
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • About Us
  • Subscribe
About

Established in 2006, Mornington Peninsula News Group (MPNG) is a locally owned and operated, independent media company.

MPNG publishes five weekly community newspapers: the Western Port News, Mornington News, Southern Peninsula News, Frankston Times and Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News.

MPNG also publishes two glossy magazines: Peninsula Essence and Peninsula Kids.

Facebook Twitter
© 2022 Mornington Peninsula News Group.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.