Teal organisers hunt for state election candidates

Teal organisers linked to the campaign of Kooyong MP Monique Ryan are once again looking to claim Liberal heartland.

Teal organisers linked to the campaign of Kooyong MP Monique Ryan are once again looking to claim Liberal heartland by looking for a candidate to run in Kew.

Hayden O’Connor, who led Dr Ryan’s social media team during the federal election, on Tuesday posted an advertisement and a website calling for applications to run in the state seat at the November election.

The post, which is headlined “Are you the next member for Kew?” features a teal background and is authorised by Mr O’Connor under the name of Kew Independents.

It also takes a swipe at current Kew MP Tim Smith, who has openly criticised the teal independents and will not contest the election after a drink driving incident.

“Kew’s current representative is an embarrassment to our community,” it says.

‘We deserve better than the inadequate representation provided by toxic party politics.

“The people of Kew are intelligent, professional and compassionate.

Current Kew MP Tim Smith.

“Within our community are many talented individuals more than capable of representing Kew in the Victorian Parliament.

“We just need one of you to step forward.”

The poster also references the Kooyong election result, in which former Treasurer Josh Frydenberg lost the seat, as a “historic moment for Australian politics”.

“We now want the same for Kew.”

The post and corresponding website does not appear to reference the Climate 200 group who helped to fund the federal.

Victoria’s stricter laws and caps on political donations will limit the ability of larger financial backers to support similar candidates at a state level.

Among other seats expected to be targeted by similar campaigns are Hawthorn, held by Labor, and Brighton.

CANDIDATES TO REPLACE HIGH-PROFILE MPS

Women are taking the lead among the new candidates that have emerged to run for Labor in the seats vacated by outgoing senior ministers as the party finalises its factional carve up ahead of the election.

A majority of candidates have already been selected by the party for the November poll, but officials were sent scrambling to find new talent after high-profile exits from former ministers Martin Pakula, Martin Foley, James Merlino and Lisa Neville.

The senior Labor MPs will see out the rest of the term but will not contest the election.

Victorian Labor is currently under the control of the party’s powerful national executive and the panel is expected to endorse new election candidates put forward by each faction within the week.

James Merlino announced last month he was leaving politics. Picture: Brendan Beckett

Under a peace deal within the party, Premier Daniel Andrews Socialist Left grouping has been voting with a right-aligned group known as Labor Unity.

They are made up of the Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association (SDA), the Transport Workers Union and a collection of party members linked to Stephen Conroy and Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles.

Although other Labor members may put their hand up for the seats, this alliance is expected to endorse the choices put up by each faction.

Allies of Mr Pakula, a long-time NUW official more recently aligned with the AWU, had been pushing to have Kingston Mayor Steve Staikos take his number one upper house spot for Melbourne’s southeast.

But the SDA have put forward one of their organisers, Michael Galea, and he is likely to be endorsed.

Alison Marchant is expected to run for Lisa Neville’s seat of Bellarine.

The shoppies union, one of Australia’s largest, has picked up candidates across a swag of seats over the past six months from Labor’s Moderates, who are not part of the peace deal and whose senior leaders have been hit with an ongoing anti-corruption investigation.

No findings have yet been made.

Mr Merlino is also a member of the SDA and the union is set to replace him with teacher Daniela De Martino in Monbulk

Alison Marchant, another schoolteacher and former staffer to Mr Marles, is expected to run for Ms Neville’s seat of Bellarine.

South Metropolitan upper house MP Nina Taylor is also tipped to move to Mr Foley’s lower house seat of Albert Park, which comes under the control of the Left.

This would move her into a relatively safer position for re-election but there is some concern within Labor that the electorate is vulnerable to the Greens after a strong federal showing.