Eden-Monaro by-election: Liberals confirm three-cornered contest; Albanese names Kristy McBain as preferred Labor candidate

As jockeying for bellwether seat intensifies, Anthony Albanese names preferred candidate and NSW Liberals vote to contest.

NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro, NSW Transport and Infrastructure Minister Andrew Constance and Liberal Senator Jim Molan, who has expressed interest in running for the seat of Eden-Monaro.

The NSW Liberal Party has voted in favour of contesting the seat of Eden-Monaro at its upcoming by-election, setting up a three-cornered showdown against the Nationals and Labor to secure the marginal electorate.

In an email sent about 10am, NSW Liberal Party state director Chris Stone confirmed that a motion to stand a candidate had been passed unopposed by the Executive’s 28 members.

The ballot, held via email, was considered something of a fait accompli. On Wednesday the prime minister confirmed that the Liberal Party would contest the seat, complicating what had until then been a relatively clear run for the NSW Nationals Deputy Premier, John Barilaro.

Nominations for Liberal Party preselection will open imminently, The Australian understands, with jostling already underway between candidates.

The Liberal party ignored calls from the National party to allow them a clear run for the rural seat.

The seat is being contested at a by-election because its sitting MP, Dr Mike Kelly, announced his retirement from politics this week.

Mr Barilaro, the member for Monaro, has already flagged his strong intention to run as a candidate. On Friday he told reporters he was still weighing the decision and would likely make an announcement about his intentions after the weekend.

Another contender, Andrew Constance, the NSW Transport Minister, has also signalled an intention to contest the seat for the NSW Liberal Party, but only if Mr Barilaro does not stand.

On Friday Mr Constance told Sydney radio broadcaster Alan Jones that he and Mr Barilaro would not be “contesting each other”.

Other contenders include Senator Jim Molan and Fiona Kotvojs, who came close to unseating Dr Kelly at last year’s election.

Albo names his candidate

Meanwhile, Labor leader Anthony Albanese has announced Bega Valley Mayor Kristy McBain as his preferred candidate for the by-election in the federal seat of Eden-Monaro.

Ms McBain has won the backing of Mr Albanese, putting her on course to win preselection after nominations close on Monday.

Bega Valley Shire mayor Kristy McBain

Mr Albanese said Ms McBain was in a unique position because she understood the people of Eden-Monaro, who have suffered from drought, bushfires and now the coronavirus.

“She is someone who has been on the ground when the people of Eden-Monaro have needed people to be present and to be around and representing them,” Mr Albanese said. “She is someone who will bring that passion, that capacity, the talent to advocate strongly for these regional communities.”

Ms McBain thanked Dr Kelly for being a strong advocate for the electorate and said his shoes would be big ones to fill.

“With the resignation of Mike Kelly, now is the time that Eden-Monaro is a reset button, a reset button and I think people want a change in politics,” Ms McBain said. “They want people to represent them at a local level and they want people they know, people they trust people they see every day.”

“I want to be that voice of the people of Eden-Monaro because I don’t want my community to be left behind and at the moment, my community is being left behind.”

She said after triple crises of drought, coronavirus and bushfires, the community wasn’t receiving the support they needed and she would fight to have their voices heard in Canberra.

Kelly’s resignation

Dr Kelly announced on Thursday he would vacate the seat due to health complications sustained while serving for the Australian Defence Force in the Middle East, forcing a by-election.

Dr Kelly held the bellwether seat for the Labor Party from 2007-2013 and again since 2016 on a slim margin of less than one per cent.

His resignation paves the way for the Coalition to consolidate Scott Morrison’s high approval ratings and win the seat, increasing their parliamentary majority to three.

Constance’s plan

Mr Constance this morning clarified his comments to Jones, telling The Australian:

"There's not going to be a three cornered contest involving two state ministers."

Earlier in the year he said he will step down once the bushfire recovery process in his electorate, where almost 900 homes were destroyed last fire season, was completed.

“I’ve said before, I’m going to do the recovery and then resign, because this changes you,” Mr Constance said in March.

However, Mr Constance told The Australian that the recovery process could take “about ten years,” leaving plenty of time for a tilt at a federal seat.

Mr Barilaro is considered to be a shoo-in for the Nationals ticket, with his state electorate of Monaro, which he holds on a 11 per cent margin, encompassing parts of the federal electorate.

“If there is an opportunity to do something on the federal political landscape I have made it quite clear (I would take it),” Mr Barilaro said on Friday morning.

“I’ve got a tough decision to make,” he said, adding that NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has expressed a desire for him to stay in state parliament.

Polling conducted by the National party suggests that Eden-Monaro, which stretches from Yass to Eden on the south coast, is likely to fall towards the Coalition, with Labor leader Anthony Albanese now facing the prospect of becoming the first opposition leader to lose a by-election to an incumbent government in more than 100 years.

“Mike Kelly is one of the few people in this place who can say that he won a seat off the Coalition not once but twice,” the Opposition Leader said on Thursday.

“Eden-Monaro is a tough seat to win.”