The path to parliament runs through councils. Here’s why the Liberal blunder matters
By Kayla Olaya
Starting out on a local council ballot has been a long-standing practice for would-be MPs to cut their political teeth on their way up through to state and federal parliaments.
The failure of the NSW Liberals to nominate 140 candidates in as many as 16 councils by the noon deadline on Wednesday has possibly derailed what could have been the next generation of NSW parliamentarians for at least four years.
Premier Chris Minns served on Hurstville Council before becoming deputy mayor in 2007. He was elected to parliament in 2015 before becoming Labor leader in 2021.
He’s not alone. These MPs have risen through the ranks of local councils, representing their communities on a smaller scale and paving the way to their bigger gigs.
And these are all the state MPs who have moved from local government into Macquarie Street.
In the last state election alone, eight councillors successfully gained a seat at Macqaurie Street, including Liberals Rory Amon, Stephanie di Pasqua and Jordan Lane; Labor members Nathan Hagerty, Donna Davis and Karen McKeown; and independents Judy Hannan and Michael Regan.
Moving from local to state government is a big step up. But for some, the allure of local zoning and bin collections keeps some performing both roles.
Donna Davis held full-time jobs as both lord mayor of the City of Parramatta this year and Parramatta’s state representative.
But she eventually resigned from the mayoralty, and council altogether, to focus on state politics.
Councils that will not have a single Liberal candidate are Blue Mountains, Campbelltown, Cessnock, Lane Cove, Northern Beaches, Shoalhaven and Wollongong.
In Camden, Canterbury-Bankstown, Central Coast, Georges River, Hornsby, Maitland, Newcastle, North Sydney and Penrith, some but not all Liberal candidates were left off the ballot.
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