Queensland Election 2017: ‘Tinder’ candidate Saraya Beric to remove headmaster’s endorsement

SARAYA Beric, who caused a storm this week by using Tinder to spruit her policies, has been asked to remove an endorsement from the headmaster of one of the Gold Coast’s most exclusive schools from her website.

MERMAID Beach independent candidate Saraya Beric, who turned to Tinder to spread her message, has been forced to remove a glowing endorsement from the headmaster of one of the Gold Coast’s most exclusive schools.

The former One Nation staffer made international headlines this week for using Tinder to lure voters, but her campaign received a blow on Wednesday when she was ordered to remove from her official website an endorsement from All Saints headmaster Patrick Wallas.

All Saints headmaster Patrick Wallas. Picture: John Gass

The former All Saints student received a glowing character reference from Mr Wallas, but after an inquiry from The Courier-Mail, he yesterday issued a statement saying he had since asked Ms Beric “to remove the character reference from her website so the school is not incorrectly thought to be participating in an election campaign”.

Ms Beric said she was disappointed by the decision, but had not been personally told to remove the material.

“That’s politics unfortunately,” she said.

Mermaid Beach independent candidate Saraya Beric used dating aoo Tinder to try and woo voters. Picture: Richard Gosling

A former One Nation staffer who quit the party earlier this year, Ms Beric is running against long-term MP Ray Stevens for the Gold Coast seat.

Her strategy of connecting with voters through the dating app Tinder drew headlines, but she is still considered an outsider for Saturday’s contest.

Originally published as Queensland Election 2017: ‘Tinder’ candidate Saraya Beric to remove headmaster’s endorsement