Inside the Liberal party plot to win back Warringah

A Liberal Party meeting in Warringah is set to get heated as branch members take stock of the federal election result and demand changes to contentious preselection “captain picks”.

A Liberal Party meeting in Warringah is set to get heated next week as branch members take stock of last month’s bruising election results and demand changes to contentious preselection “captain picks”.

Party officials have called a full meeting of Warringah Liberal Party members on Tuesday where an open discussion on the results of election day – and how to win back the seat in three years’ time – is expected to dominate proceedings.

There are calls by some members due to attend the meeting for the party to focus on the centre-right position – while others have even suggested emulating campaign tactics forged by the Teal independents to win back the seat.

The meeting comes after the Liberal’s candidate for the electorate Katherine Deves failed to unseat sitting Independent Zali Steggall at the May 21 poll.

The Liberals party two party preferred vote in the once safe blue ribbon territory also took a 3.7 per cent dive to 39 per cent while Ms Steggall comfortably held on to the seat with a 61 per cent share of the vote.

Katherine Deves pictured with former Prime Minister Tony Abbott during her concession speech on election day.

The election result followed weeks of simmering tension among local Liberal party members over the federal executive’s decision to override branch preselection powers and endorse Ms Deves seven weeks’ out from polling day.

The Balgowlah Fairlight branch of the party will use next week’s meeting to demand changes to preselection rules in a motion that also “condemns” the federal executive for “manipulating and intervening” in democratic processes.

A photo of Katherine Deves talking to voters on election day

A motion put forward by the branch stated members had been “deprived of their right to select a candidate” due to the “failure” of the NSW State Executive to set a preselection timetable, and the subsequent intervention by the federal executive.

“These actions resulted in record low turnout of volunteers and fundraising (in the electorate) and the absence of a candidate that represented the majority of members,” the motion states.

A Liberal source – who described the preselection process as “diabolical” – said branch members would also push for executive leadership changes in a major shake up to improve the party’s electoral chances in 2025.

A photo of Katherine Deves talking to voters on election day.

A senior party member from a separate Warringah branch believes the party should focus less on internal politics, and more focus on the constituents it represents.

“This is at the heart of why people feel disconnected to politics. It’s become an insiders game where the factions are more interested in keeping control rather than staying in government,” he said.

“For the average person, it looks like politicians are consumed with their own power struggles rather than focusing on what their constituents need.

“We need candidates that come from a grassroots level like the Teals are producing rather than a conga line of people coming out of university and staffer jobs then automatically going into parliament.

A photo of Tony Abbott meeting the party faithful on election night.

“The bottom line is people don’t want to see a repeat of the captain picks and an earlier preselection process because if you’re a candidate that’s unknown, you need at least five or six months to become familiar with voters.

“You can’t appear out of nowhere and tell constituents to ‘vote for me’.

“The federal leader of the party also has to be committed and supportive of winning and at the state level, Warringah needs to be seen as a priority seat because with that comes funding.

“At the last two elections we didn’t have any of those things and unless that’s addressed I can’t see the Liberals winning back Warringah in the next 10 years.”

Zali Steggall on election day.

Ms Deves has also spoken out about the preselection process, saying the party needs to stay true to its “centre-right position”.

“Grassroots members of the Warringah Liberal party were denied a plebiscite for their federal candidate, as consequence, the conference was disunified and disengaged during the campaign,” she said.

“Candidates in surrounding electorates who presented themselves as socially progressive lost to Teals by margins larger than Warringah. If we are to have broad appeal and defeat the incumbent Teal, who has little to no clout in a Labor-majority government, we must remain true to our centre-right position.

“We must present as unified, with a clear vision differentiated from our opponents and policies that will deliver real and meaningful opportunities for the community.”

Katherine Deves pictured during her concession speech.

In the lead-up to the election, party members from branches including Freshwater and Condamine had refused to volunteer as campaign workers for Ms Deves in response to the preselection process.

The Warringah party members also wouldn’t volunteer for Liberal Trent Zimmerman in his bid to retain the neighbouring seat of North Sydney because he was also one of seven “captain’s picks” appointed by the federal executive.

Ms Deves, who is a co-founder of the Save Women’s Sport lobby group, was endorsed ahead of Lincoln Parker, an international defence expert from Queenscliff and David Brady, a disability advocate and president of the Liberal’s Waverton/Wollstonecraft branch.