Major hurdle cleared for election after ScoMo ‘captain picks’ upheld

A major barrier preventing Prime Minister Scott Morrison from calling the election has now been cleared.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison will be allowed to keep his “captain’s pick” candidates in several NSW seats after a significant legal challenge was dismissed in court - removing a major barrier to him calling the election.

A three-judge panel in the NSW Court of Appeal found they did not have the authority to rule on internal party politics, but even if they did, Mr Morrison’s selections were “still valid in any event”.

A legal challenge by Liberal state executive member and 43-year-old businessman Matthew Camenzuli had created a hurdle to the election being called while the judgment was pending.

Mr Camenzuli’s lawyer Scott Robertson argued the federal arm of the party had sought to throw the party’s constitution “in the bin” by not allowing local branch members to vote for candidates.

He said the courts had jurisdiction over the matter under the Electoral Act.

But in their decision on Tuesday, justices John Basten, Mark Leeming and Anthony Payne dismissed Mr Camenzuli’s case.

They said it gave rise to no “justiciable issue”, meaning the courts didn’t have power to make a ruling.

But in the interests of “finality”, even if they were wrong on that point, the intervention by Mr Morrison was still valid and would stand.

It appears to have put an end to a months-long standoff over preselections due to factional infighting within the NSW division of the party.

Matthew Camenzuli’s case was dismissed in court.

Last month the federal executive voted for a committee to be set up to take over control of the NSW Liberals because of the impasse.

It was made up of Mr Morrison, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet and former federal Liberal president Christine McDiven.

They endorsed Immigration Minister Alex Hawke, Environment Minister Sussan Ley and North Sydney MP Trent Zimmerman without challenges from other nominees.

But other empty seats still remained.

After the NSW division again failed to move forward, the committee was appointed again.

Mr Morrison then installed his preferred candidates in a staggering nine seats on Saturday amid a looming deadline for him to call the election.

The Prime Minister is now free to call the election. Picture: Graham Denholm/Getty Images

Mr Camenzuli wanted grassroots members to be able to choose the candidates in all 12 seats.

In an email to members last month, NSW Liberal Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells slammed Mr Morrison for installing his ally Mr Hawke and the other MPs without giving grassroots members a say.

“What is the precedent that is being set when a ‘captain’s pick’ can be foisted on our division by the federal executive?” she said.

The senator has also pointed the finger at Mr Hawke over the whole mess.

She wrote in another email that Mr Hawke stalled the process in a number of seats, including his own, by not attending meetings to clear candidates for preselection ballots.

Some believed this was a tactic to justify the federal intervention.

“The reason for this intervention is, I am advised primarily, that for months and months the Prime Minister’s representative on state executive Alex Hawke has failed/refused to carry out his responsibilities as a member of the nomination review committee in a timely manner,” Senator Fierravanti-Wells wrote.

“I am also advised that some candidates have been waiting for almost 10 months for their nomination review committee meeting to be held.”

Mr Hawke has never commented publicly on this matter.

Mr Camenzuli still has the option of appealing to the High Court.