Victoria elects trans councillor Tosh-Jake Finnigan to Colac Otway Council

A red shirts whistleblower has become the first trans-identifying councillor to be elected in Victoria. See what their plans are for their new role.

Tosh-Jake Finnigan (right) has been elected to Colac Otway Shire Council, and claims they are the first trans-identifying councillor in the state. He is pictured with the council's chief executive Anne Howard. Picture: Colac Otway Shire Council.

The whistleblower for the Andrews Government’s red shirts controversy has been elected to a western Victoria council, and claims they are the first trans-identifying councillor in the state.

Tosh-Jake Finnigan, 29, has vowed to continue to “call a spade a spade” after they became Colac Otway Shire’s newest councillor following a countback to replace former mayor Joe McCraken on Wednesday.

Finnigan, 29, told Leader they would hold the organisation and councillors to account, and ensure the council was getting “decent value for every ratepayer dollar that is spent”.

“There are some things I have to be mindful of with LGA code of conduct, but I will call a spade a spade,” they said.

“It’s a massive win for me personally, but the reality is I think this will be a win for the entire shire, having a passionate advocate for the region.”

Finnigan was a founder of the Restore Democracy Sack Dan Andrews Party and stood as a Western Victoria upper house candidate at last year’s state election, with the seat ultimately won by Liberal candidate Mr McCracken.

In 2015, the former Labor staffer exposed the Andrews Government’s red shirts scheme, which found almost $388,000 in taxpayers’ money was spent on part-paying electorate staff to campaign for the 2014 election.

Labor paid the money back after the Victorian Ombudsman found in 2018 the party had misused the funds, and police did not lay charges.

Finnigan, 29, said they “very nearly gave birth to a brick” after the council countback, which came just over two years after narrowly missing out on a position in the 2020 council election.

Tosh-Jake Finnigan, 29, a music store owner and part-owner of pub in Warrion, has been elected as Colac Otway Shire's new councillor. Picture: Supplied.

They have identified as non-binary since 2015, and said they had been told by members of the Victorian Pride Lobby that they were “the first trans-identifying person appointed to any elected body in Victoria’s history”.

“Whilst I never set out to be the first, I will do my very best to set a good example and blaze a trail for future LQBTQIA+ candidates,” Finnigan wrote on their Facebook page.

“With this in mind, I would also like to state that being trans is only one part of my identity, and I will do what I can for everyone within our shire, regardless of who they are.”

A VEC spokeswoman could not confirm Finnigan’s claims as the commission does not collect gender information from candidates.

Finnigan owns a music store in Colac and also recently became a part-owner of a pub in Warrion on the town’s outskirts.

They said the victory was a massive personal triumph and they looked forward to serving all members of the Colac community.

“I’m feeling so immensely proud that I’m in this position and voters put their faith in me, and that I can advocate for my community and help to ensure their needs are met,” Finnigan said.

On their Facebook page, Finnigan wrote that they felt there was “ a lot of work to be done to ensure Colac Otway is a seen not just as somewhere to visit, but for people to raise their families and plant their roots.”