Labor infighting blamed for Victorian Senator Kimberley Kitching’s death

Labor’s “Game of Thrones” style tactics took a toll on human rights campaigner, Senator Kimberley Kitching, who died this week from a heart attack, it’s claimed.

Labor factional bosses plotting to oust Victorian Senator Kimberley Kitching have been accused of contributing to her fatal heart attack.

A Saturday Herald Sun investigation has revealed the bitter fighting within the ALP which many believe may have contributed to the sudden death of the 52-year-old in her car on Thursday.

Colleagues of the human rights campaigner say she was the victim of “a campaign of vilification” in the months leading up to her death which has rocked the world of politics.

On Friday, Senator Kitching’s devastated husband Andrew Landeryou was too upset to speak about her sudden death.

Former Labor Leader Bill Shorten and his wife Chloe were among many grieving her death.

Victorian Senator Kimberley Kitching.

The foreign policy hawk, who had been unwell for months with a thyroid condition, died of a suspected heart attack in Strathmore in Melbourne’s north.

On Friday, plumbers’ union leader Earl Setches accused factional bosses of revealing a plan to dump the first-term senator at a Zoom meeting on Wednesday morning.

He said “the stress of it had played a part in her death”.

Mr Setches said that on Wednesday he and Health Workers’ Union boss Diana Asmar had asked Victorian Right faction bosses to agree to endorse Senator Kitching for the top spot on Labor’s Victorian Senate ticket.

Bizarrely, with only weeks to go until the federal election is called, Victorian Labor has still not chosen its Senate ticket.

Factional bosses are suspected of planning to dump Senator Kitching and Senator Kim Carr from the Left faction.

Mr Setches said that in return for the Right backing Senator Kitching, the unions would drop their plans for a High Court appeal against 2020 federal intervention into Victoria that has suspended the membership in the wake of branch-stacking allegations.

Kimberley Kitching had been unwell for a number of months with a thyroid condition.

Federal Labor senator Kimberley Kitching with Labor leader Bill Shorten.

But he said despite the election being imminent, the bosses led by retail workers’ union secretary Michael Donovan and Labor candidate for Hawke Sam Rae, had refused the offer — deciding instead to leave the decision to Labor’s national executive.

“They said it’s up to national executive and to the leader,” he said.

Mr Setches said of the bosses: “They’d just prefer to get people up in their Game of Thrones, instead of the real job of winning elections and representing working people.”

The accusation came as members of Labor’s Canberra caucus said the late senator had been bullied by the Labor Party leadership for the past two years.

In January last year Labor leader Anthony Albanese stripped her of the position of shadow assistant minister for government accountability.

She was later banned from Labor’s Senate tactics committee over unsubstantiated accusations, despite being the party’s deputy manager of opposition business.

Kimberley Kitching and her husband Andrew Landeryou. Picture: Ray Strange.

Kimberley Kitching was aged 52 when she passed away.

Since January 2021, Labor’s Senate leadership had only allowed her to ask six questions in parliament.

The treatment by Labor’s leadership had contributed to her feelings of isolation in Canberra, colleagues said.

“She was the subject of a campaign of vilification, no doubt,” one said.

Another asked “why did they torture her by holding the preselection over her? There was absolutely no reason to do it”.

Speaking early Friday, former Labor leader Bill Shorten described the effect that the preselection uncertainty had on her.

“I can’t tell you why this woman of 52 was taken from us but I have no doubt that the stress of politics in the machinations in the back rooms had its toll,’’ he said.

Mr Albanese later expressed deep sadness about the loss of Ms Kitching, but distanced himself from allegations of factional infighting in the lead-up to her sudden death.

The Opposition leader on Friday said politics could be stressful but no one had foreshadowed the tragic death of his bright and valued colleague.

Federal Labor senator Kimberley Kitching with Bill Shorten.

Asked to respond to Mr Shorten’s comments, Mr Albanese said Senator Kitching’s death was tragic and that politics could be a “difficult business”.

“It’s one where there’s stress each and every day. And it can be really difficult,” Mr Albanese told reporters in Murwillumbah.

“But no one foresaw this tragedy occurring. And that’s why it’s such a shock for the entire Labor family.”

Mr Albanese was then asked whether he had supported Senator Kitching’s place on his upper house ticket.

“It wasn’t a matter for me. We have our internal organisational processes of preselection. That is what we have in the normal way,” he said.

Originally published as Labor infighting blamed for Victorian Senator Kimberley Kitching’s death