Battle of the sexes in key Labor electorate

The battle over candidate selection in a key federal seat has sparked a bitter rift in the Labor Party as a push to install a female gathers pace.

Stephanie Briese, Brianne Cooper, Sarah Carter, Rebekah Hogan, Natalie Hutchins, Deepti Alurkar, Katharine Nikolic, Julia Mason, Anya Rasic and Katerine Theodosis are demanding a female Labor candidate for Hawke. Picture: Tim Carrafa

A group of Labor women including Andrews government minister Natalie Hutchins are leading a push for their party to choose a female candidate for the new federal seat of Hawke.

In May, Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese sparked a backlash and a legal battle when he moved to rush through preselection for safe Victorian seats.

Although the court case is still underway, Labor’s national executive has been cleared to choose its candidates on Tuesday.

Former Labor state secretary Sam Rae is the clear frontrunner for Hawke, but some in the party are backing Maribyrnong councillor Sarah Carter and former Melton council candidate Deepti Alurkar in an effort to install a woman in the plum electorate.

The issue has also divided the party because local members do not currently have voting rights and the process will be decided by a ballot of senior party figures.

Ms Alurkar said more women were needed in parliament.

“It is important to be putting your hand up and more so important to support the women who are putting their hand up,” she said.

Ms Carter said it was “quite sad” Labor’s Right faction was lagging behind in equal representation and women needed better access to safe seats and senior party roles.

But a senior Right figure said the party was “well on the way” to meeting its affirmative action targets, adding that denying Mr Rae would be “a huge lost opportunity”.

Ms Hutchins said it was disappointing local members wouldn’t have a say on the seat named after former prime minister Bob Hawke.

Some Labor figures questioned her intervention in the factional dispute, after she had earlier considered running for Hawke herself.