Controversial senator Gerard Rennick ‘best chance’ of avoiding ‘embarrassing’ loss
Knives are said to be out for Queensland senator Gerard Rennick even though some thing the outspoken LNP member is the party’s best chance of avoiding an “embarrassing” loss of a fifth Senate spot.
QLD Politics
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Knives are said to be out for LNP senator Gerard Rennick ahead of the party’s Senator preselection next month, amid some anger in the party over his running a voting blockade against the Morrison government over vaccine mandates.
But there is a growing thought that the outspoken senator will be able to narrowly see off a challenge, with some allies framing him as the party’s best chance of avoiding an “embarrassing” loss of the LNP’s fifth Senate spot.
Preselection for the senators is taking place on the first Friday of July, with senators Paul Scarr and Susan McDonald expected to be a shoe in to retain their top spots on the ticket.
While other candidates may nominate for their one and two spots on the LNP’s senate ticket, insiders say “they won’t have a chance at winning”.
The third spot on the ticket is not a guaranteed victory for the successful preselection candidate, as learned by former senator Amanda Stoker in the 2022 election.
Several sources have indicated Senator Rennick could survive the bid from challengers such as former Young Liberal vice-president Nelson Savanh or previous LNP party treasurer Stuart Fraser.
One insider said Senator Rennick had developed a niche personal and regularly hosted forums, attended by 200 people or more, talking about anti-vaccine mandate views as well as other issues.
“Going down to four senators from five would be embarrassing, but that’s what we’re looking at if we choose a no name candidate,” they said.
Senator Rennick caused a headache for his party in late 2021 and 2022 when he was party of a group of rebel Coalition senators refusing to vote for government legislation over vaccine mandates.
Meanwhile, Mr Savanh, one of several candidates seeking to challenge and who works with strategic communications firm Michelson Alexander, has been outspoken about the party’s need to reform.
In a blog post made in June last year, Mr Savanh warned the Liberal Party, similar to British conservatives 20 years ago, was facing a “nasty party moment”.
“We’ve just seen an election dominated by coarse debates about trans kids, the safety and agency of women, climate denialism and integrity in politics,” he wrote in the post.
He argued the party needed to seek more diverse candidates to win, suggesting a range of ideas be considered, including increasing vote weighting for some “A-list” candidates.
The final list of candidates is yet to be revealed, as the party undergoes its vetting process, with interviews still taking place last week.
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