Updated
Former Labor Party president Warren Mundine is expected to be installed as the Liberal candidate for the federal seat of Gilmore at the behest of the Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
Key points:
- ABC election analyst Antony Green said Mr Mundine was a “brave choice” for Gilmore
- The Liberal Party state executive is expected to block the preselected Grant Schultz’s candidacy
- Mr Mundine was a member of the Labor Party for two decades before quitting in 2012
Liberal Party members in the seat had already preselected Grant Schultz to replace sitting member Ann Sudmalis, who is quitting politics.
The ABC understands the Liberal Party state executive is expected to block a motion to endorse Mr Schultz’ candidacy today.
They will instead endorse a motion to parachute the Prime Minister’s preferred candidate, Mr Mundine, into the seat.
It is understood Mr Mundine is not a member of the Liberal Party, but that his membership application is being processed.
Ms Sudmalis held the seat on a 0.7 per cent margin — or about 1,500 votes — at the 2016 election.
Gilmore covers an area from Kiama to Tuross Head on the NSW south coast.
ABC election analyst Antony Green said it would be difficult for the Government to retain the seat when a federal vote is held later this year.
“The margin is much lower than the swings that have reported in opinion polls for several months,” he said.
“It’s the sort of regional seat where personal vote matters.
“Mr Mundine is a brave choice.”
Raised in northern New South Wales, Mr Mundine is known for his advocacy on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander issues.
In 2006 he became the first Indigenous president of the Australian Labor Party and once had his eyes set on the senate seat that eventually went to former NSW Premier Bob Carr.
The high-profile businessman had quit the Labor Party in 2012 after 20 years, saying it was “no longer the party he joined”.
He was appointed as the chairman of the Abbott Government’s Indigenous Advisory Council the following year before the council was dissolved by Malcolm Turnbull in 2017.
When stories began circulating last year that Mr Mundine was being sounded out for the seat, Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten accused him of “looking elsewhere” because he “couldn’t get a seat in the Labor Party”.
Earlier today Mr Shorten said Mr Mundine was free to run for whichever party he chose.
“He was unsuccessful in the Labor Party so it’s a free country, you can run for whatever party will have you,” he said.
“But I do make this point about the seat of Gilmore — the Liberal Party replaced a woman with a man and a man who wants to put nuclear reactors into Australia, including Jervis Bay. I just don’t think they get how everyday Australians think.”
Mr Mundine is a strong supporter of nuclear power and had previously said there were a number of different places where a future plant could go.
Since Mr Morrison took over from Mr Turnbull in last year’s leadership coup, Mr Mundine became an outspoken critic of Mr Turnbull and a vocal supporter of Mr Morrison’s policies.
The ABC understands the deal to parachute Mr Mundine into Gilmore was driven by the Prime Minister’s centre-right faction but agreed to by the dominant moderate faction in a cross-factional deal.
Ms Sudmalis announced she would step down from the seat of Gilmore in September before she launched an extraordinary spray at NSW state Liberal MP Gareth Ward, who she accused of bullying her.
Mr Ward denied the claim.
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