Kellie Sloane fighting to keep Vaucluse in Liberal hands in 2023

Liberal candidate for Vaucluse Kellie Sloane reveals why she’s running and how she plans to bring disillusioned voters back into the fold.

At the official launch of her campaign as Liberal candidate for Vaucluse with Premier Dominic Perrottet, one of Kellie Sloane’s son’s friends spotted her from the Double Bay library.

“He came up and gave me a big hug to say congratulations,” Sloane recalls.

Though she’s spent the majority of her career in television news studios and board meetings, Sloane’s family life has been firmly planted in the eastern suburbs for more than 20 years. It’s not surprising people greet her in the street. Her three sons play rugby near their home in Centennial Park, and Sloane and her husband Adam Connolly, a former media adviser to then prime minister John Howard, are mainstays at the Rose Bay dog park with golden retriever Teddy.

For many, the return of Sloane’s infectious enthusiasm and impressive poise will come as a welcome reminder of the more than 13 years she spent as a presenter for the Nine Network, where she had a stint opposite Karl Stefanovic on Today and covered the Bali bombings and their aftermath on the ground.

Kellie Sloane is the 2023 Liberal candidate for Vaucluse. Picture: Renee Nowytarger

Others may know her work with primary school health education NGO Life Education – known to children Australia-wide as the home of ‘Healthy Harold’ – where she ascended to the position of Australian chief executive.

But what is less well-known is Sloane’s story with the Liberal Party. It began in Australian wine country, more specifically regional Barossa in South Australia, where her parents were small business owners. When she was two, her dad ran as a Liberal candidate and later served as Barossa mayor.

Sloane says her commitment to community was fostered by her parents from a young age.

“Mum and Dad were always part of Rotary and service clubs and serving on the hospital board or being involved in local sport,” she says. “I really think I got my sense of community from Mum and Dad, in that we were always taught to put family and community first.”

Ambition has been another throughline.

At just 18, Sloane joined ABC Adelaide as a TV reporter in 1991. From there her star rose swiftly and she was presenting on prime-time television with the Nine Network in Sydney a mere four years later. It was there, in 2002, that she witnessed the devastating terrorist attacks on a tourist hotspot in Bali that left 88 Australians and 38 Indonesians dead.

Sloane calls the experience “one of the most difficult and harrowing assignments I’ve had”.

“Covering the subsequent trial of those responsible shaped me as a person,” she says.

Part of which was taking a step back to reassess.

Sloane with her husband Adam Connolly and their three sons. Picture: Scott Ehler

“I think it got to a point when our children were little where I started thinking about what was really meaningful to me,” she says of her second act leading Life Education. “And rather than being an observer, as a journalist, being an active participant in the change that I wanted to see. For me that was around empowering children and young people to thrive.”

Sloane calls her work at the trusted children’s education company “one of the most meaningful things I’ve done”, naming her proudest achievements as levelling up the brand’s digital capabilities – which proved crucial when the Covid pandemic hit – and using data-driven metrics to show the organisation’s impact.

On a trip to Israel looking at education technology she crossed paths with Gabrielle Upton. The outgoing Vaucluse MP quickly became a mentor, leading her to join Upton’s Liberal Party branch.

“I am so fortunate to be following in Gabrielle’s footsteps,” Sloane says of the eastern suburbs MP who has represented the Liberal stronghold for 12 years.

“She has been a friend and a mentor to me and to many other women locally as well.”

Upton called Sloane’s “long and proud record of successful community advocacy” a key attribute.

“I believe our Liberal Nationals government has a solid track record of delivering better health, education, transport and environmental outcomes in our local area,” Upton says. “The best way to keep that happening is to elect Kellie.”

Sharing a coffee with her mentor Gabrielle Upton MP. Picture: Renee Nowytarger

Electing a woman to the safe Liberal seat also helps the NSW Liberals protect against further dwindling numbers at Macquarie St, following escalating debate about female representation in the aftermath of the federal election.

Newly named NSW Liberal Party president Maria Kovacic has said publicly she has made it her mission to attract women and people from more diverse backgrounds to the party.

And Perrottet, who has featured Sloane prominently across his social media since her preselection, has voiced enthusiasm to elevate what he sees as a strong new addition to his ranks to a ministerial position immediately.

“Kellie will be a passionate advocate for the Vaucluse community, standing up for families, protecting the environment and advocating for better children’s mental and physical health,” Perrottet said, noting her “accomplished” professional background.

“The people of Vaucluse need a representative with drive and enthusiasm – they’ll get that with Kellie Sloane.”

Female representation was not at issue when party members named their next representative; frontrunners Sloane, Woollahra councillor Mary-Lou Jarvis and Roanne Knox are all professionally successful eastern suburbs women.

Enjoying time with her dog Ted. Picture: Renee Nowytarger

Rocked by the loss of moderate federal MP Dave Sharma in the teal wave that led to Allegra Spender’s resounding win in Wentworth, which overlaps the state seat of Vaucluse, the Liberal Party has selected a political novice with a strong professional background and deep local ties to run against independent challenger Karen Freyer, who launched her campaign two months ago.

The independent candidate has said she wants to build a grassroots movement and win Climate 200 funding to support a campaign she believes will attract voters who remain disillusioned with the major parties – and who were energised by the federal election.

“We know from experience that the major parties focus their energy and resources on marginal seats,” Freyer said.

She has focused on overdevelopment, environmental protections and integrity as arguments for the first non-Liberal representative in the seat’s 95-year history.

Sloane sees her candidacy as the start of a reset for the NSW Liberals, who will see a changing of the guard as eight frontbenchers retire from politics.

She personally led the party’s post-mortem analysis of the defeat of Sharma in Wentworth, calling the loss a “deep travesty”.

That the moderate Liberal MP was not re-elected “in great part not because of his own candidacy, but because of issues that were broader than our electorate, was incredibly disappointing,” she says. “There are groups of people that might normally have voted Liberal that left us at the federal election; young people, women my age, and professional women of my age with families in the area who didn’t feel like they were heard federally.

Sloane sees her candidacy as the start of a reset for the NSW Liberals. Picture: Renee Nowytarger

“I found it highly motivating personally because I truly believe that the Liberal Party is a party that best represents our community. And it needs voices and policies to promote that.”

While two September polls show the gap between Perrottet’s leading Liberal government and Labor tightening, Vaucluse is still considered a bedrock. It has been held by the Liberals since it was formed in 1927 and Upton was re-elected in 2015 with 66 per cent of the vote.

Sloane agrees with Perrottet that the NSW Liberals’ “progressive” policies speak directly to constituents.

“The things that prompted me to stand in the first place were issues around strong environmental and climate policy that will resonate with this community,” she says.

“It’s a government that has really strong policies supporting women, supporting families, supporting business, and leading on climate and energy policies. I’m excited about being a champion for all of those issues for our community for people like me, and to give people a reason to come back to the Liberal Party.”

Sloane welcomes the government’s recent healthcare reform announcement, which will allow pharmacies to prescribe medications for a wider range of conditions, including UTIs.

Such policies “are going to make our lives easier, remove the red tape and provide support for families as we go into an era where cost-of-living pressures are going to be very present”.

Sloane also contends a strong advocate within government will be the most effective ballast against future overdevelopment.

Vaucluse has been held by the Liberals since it was formed in 1927. Picture: Renee Nowytarger

She accepts it is a hot-button issue, and that concerns development has not been supported with transport and school infrastructure are “justified”.

“Whether it’s on the sidelines of rugby or at school pick-up, there is a common theme of frustration in the community about the lack of infrastructure to support ongoing growth,” she says.

“There has to be a certain level of development in our community. We all recognise that, but we also need to recognise that in the eastern suburbs we’ve been punching above our weight.”

If elected, Sloane promises to ensure housing targets take into account infrastructure needs for the eastern suburbs.

“I will be someone who reminds the decision-makers that we live in an electorate on a peninsula with 60 per cent of our residents in flats or apartments, and a further 20 per cent in semis or townhouses.

“What I will be doing is ensuring that there is adequate investment in infrastructure to support development.”