Federal election 2022 Lindsay: Meet the candidates

The seat of Lindsay in the Penrith region is a marginal seat currently held by Liberal’s Melissa McIntosh but is expected to go down to the wire. See why the competing candidates think they deserve your vote.

The Lindsay electorate was first created in 1984 and had always been held by the party of government until 2016.

This year, given its history, it is tipped to be one of the state’s most hotly contested seats.

In 2016, Liberal candidate Fiona Scott lost her seat to Labor’s Emma Husar who served one term before falling out with her party after allegations about her office behaviour and ended up not running for re-election.

These events led to Liberal’s Melissa McIntosh winning the seat in 2019.

We take a look at what each Lindsay candidate stands for in ballot order.

Trevor Ross – Labor

Trevor Ross – Labor candidate for Lindsay

Trevor Ross is a firefighter who has lived in western Sydney his whole life. As a father of four sons, Trevor says he understands the issues everyday families face.

Mr Ross has worked across the Nepean area as a professional firefighter for almost 40 years, and says unlike Scott Morrison he knows how to hold a hose.

The lifelong western Sydney man wants to see residents of the Lindsay electorate get their fair share, with Mr Ross believing the Liberal Party had let down the area.

Pieter-Joris Morssink – The Greens

Pieter-Joris Morssink – The Greens candidate for Lindsay

Pieter-Joris Morssink grew up in western Sydney and says he understands the struggles of growing up poor, being one of four children brought up by a single mother in a housing commission home.

He originally worked as a tradie up until a serious accident resulted in a move into teaching. Mr Morssink then found his calling working with disadvantaged youth, where he has since worked for more than 16 years.

Now Mr Morssink says he finds himself getting into politics to help address the issues that affect thousands of people in western Sydney.

The areas he says he wants to address include; affordable housing, the rising cost of living/cost of education, a sustainable and fossil fuel-free future, the privatisation of public infrastructure and welfare systems.

Mr Morssink said he was representing the Greens as he felt aligned with their vision of affordable housing, most notably the million homes project.

“I believe in the Greens party and their policy to tax the ‘big end of town’, namely the mining companies other blue-chip companies that pay next to no tax. This is simply not a fair system,” he said.

“This massive saving can then be passed onto all families in Australia, where the government is able to be able to provide higher standards of living for all, a higher welfare payment for struggling families, no TAFE or university fees, no price hikes for privatised companies like electricity and gas that are sold off to private interests.

“If there is a fairer tax system, it would be able to provide a fairer living standard for all families in Australia.”

Max Jago – Pauline Hanson’s One Nation

Max Jago is said to be a long-time supporter of Pauline Hanson and says he admires her strength and determination.

Mr Jago says he looks forward to fighting alongside the One Nation team to bring Australia back to its former glory.

As a small-business owner, Mr Jago believes he understands the issues small businesses face in Australia and if elected will listen to locals concerns and bring about a much-needed change.

Joseph O’Connor – United Australia Party

Joseph O'Connor, United Australia Party candidate for Lindsay

Joseph O’Connor is the United Australia Party candidate for Lindsay, who is a local of the area, graduating from the University of Western Sydney in 2016 with a Bachelor of Psychological Studies.

He worked for three years in the security industry before transitioning into work in the mental health sector.

Mr O’Connor grew up in the seat of Lindsay and decided to run in the electorate after being angered by the government restrictions, over-regulation and rising cost of living.

He said he was deeply worried by the authoritarian action taken by the government in the last two years and wanted to stand up for the freedoms and liberties of Australians.

Melissa McIntosh – Liberal

Melissa McIntosh, Liberal candidate for Lindsay

Melissa McIntosh is the current member for Lindsay who has spent her working life serving the community and helping those in need.

Ms McIntosh studied at Western Sydney University and lives in the area with her three children.

Working in the leadership team of a Penrith not-for-profit, Ms McIntosh said she was a strong advocate for affordable housing and knows how to listen and deliver for the community.

She also said she understood the pressures facing local families and will fight for better transport infrastructure to ease congestion.

“Our job is to look after hardworking families. That is why I was proud in my first week of parliament we passed legislation to provide tax relief for over 77,000 hardworking people in Lindsay,” she said.

“In Lindsay, nearly 15,000 small and medium sized businesses are benefiting from tax relief, legislated by the Morrison government and taking advantage of the instant asset write-off scheme to invest in machinery and equipment.

“I’m working hard to create local jobs, for local people in Lindsay.”

Gareth McClure- Liberal Democrats

Gareth McClure, Liberal Democrats candidate for Lindsay

After a challenging few years Gareth McClure said he decided to run for the electorate of Lindsay for the Liberal Democrats to bring back an optimistic future for residents.

Born and bred in Penrith, Mr McClure said he wished to achieve meaningful change.

The Liberal Democrats representative, who currently works in logistics while studying film, said his previous experience running a small business and working as a real estate agent led him to wanting less government control.

Rebekah Ray – Informed Medical Options Party

Rebekah Ray, Lindsay Informed Medical Options Party candidate

Rebekah Ray is the Informed Medical Options Party candidate for Lindsay and currently works as a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner and small business owner.

Born in Penrith, Ms Ray has grown up in the area and runs a small business.

She said she truly understands the needs of her community and was passionate about people’s health and wellbeing.

Ms Ray said she has always taken a strong interest in politics and had a growing concern about how out of touch the government is with the needs of the people.

If elected, Ms Ray says she would listen to her community.