Hawke staffer leads branch takeover in Angus Taylor’s seat

The Telegraph can reveal an operation to take control of the Camden Young Liberals, Angus Taylor’s electorate. One of the people who orchestrated the move is a staffer in powerbroker Alex Hawke’s office.

Kokulaan Santhakumar, a staffer in Alex Hawke's office, was involved in a major recruitment drive into Angus Taylor's seat. Source: Supplied

As he bids to become the Liberals next leader today, The Daily Telegraph can reveal Angus Taylor’s factional enemies launched a guerrilla campaign to take over his seat.

Mr Taylor and Sussan Ley will challenge for the federal Liberal leadership on Tuesday, with Ms Ley supported by her factional ally Alex Hawke, the centre-right powerbroker once described as “Scott Morrison’s numbers man.”

This masthead has discovered documents which highlight an aggressive recruitment drive into the Camden Young Liberals, attached to Mr Taylor’s electorate of Hume.

Between July and December last year the number of active members in the Camden branch grew from fewer than five to almost 30, with one notable new member an employee in Mr Hawke’s office, Kokulaan Santhakumar.

Kokulaan Santhakumar, who describes himself as a “speechwriter” and “adviser” in Alex Hawke's office, was involved in a major recruitment drive into the Camden Liberals. Source: Supplied

Mr Santhakumar, who multiple sources have described as the “architect” of the move, was accepted into the Camden Young Liberals last year, despite living in Penrith and residing 60 kilometres away at St Andrew’s College in Sydney University.

The overwhelming majority of new members lived in other parts of Sydney - some up to 80 kilometres away. Many Young Liberals were transferring from the branch in the Blue Mountains.

“We were asked to join because Camden was almost extinct and it needed to be saved. Kokulaan was telling everyone we needed to move,” one Young Liberal said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

“Months later it looks like Kokulaan is going to be the new President, and many of the other members he recruited haven’t engaged with the party. We’ve never seen them,” the source said.

It’s understood a number of Young Liberal applicants living nearby in the local Hume electorate were also denied membership in recent months.

Alex Hawke MP for Mitchell, has distanced himself from the recruitment drive into the Camden Young Liberals. NCA NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone

“If you aren’t on Team Kokulaan, you won’t get in. There was a meeting at 7:30am on a Saturday when a lot of local members were dudded. Kokulaan is now telling people he will be running Angus Taylor in a few years. This is straight from the school of Machiavellian politics,” one Young Liberal said.

Young Liberals are given full voting rights in branch matters such as pre-selection contests, which would possibly include a contest against Mr Taylor at the next federal election. However, there are hundreds of branch members across the Hume electorate.

This masthead put a range of questions to Mr Santhakumar about his involvement in the recruitment drive. In response he said: “as per Liberal Party rules, I cannot comment further on Party-related matters to the media.”

Mr Santhakumar said: “I know Angus Taylor and (wife) Louise Clegg very well, they have always had and will continue to have my full support.”

In a statement, the MP for Mitchell Mr Hawke said he was “not aware” of the actions orchestrated by Mr Santhakumar: “I am uninvolved in young Liberal issues and haven’t taken an interest in the last 15 years or more” he said.

Mr Hawke also denied his office was being used for any ongoing Liberal Party operations: “my office follows all relevant workplace requirements and protocols.”

Despite Mr Santhakumar claiming he is an “adviser” and “speechwriter” in the office, Mr Hawke said: “the staffer in question works irregularly, one day a week.”

When approached to comment on new Young Liberals in his seat, Mr Taylor said: “factional infighting and political games are not the path to rebuilding the Liberal Party – this will only make the road back to government harder.”

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Originally published as Hawke staffer leads branch takeover in Angus Taylor’s seat