Coalition fight looms as Jacinta Price runs for Senate in NT

Jacinta Price, the outspoken deputy mayor of Alice Springs, will compete against Nationals senator Sam McMahon for the CLP’s coveted NT Senate spot.

Alice Springs deputy mayor Jacinta Price. Picture: Kevin Farmer

Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, the outspoken deputy mayor of Alice Springs, will compete against Nationals senator Sam McMahon for the Country Liberal Party’s coveted Senate spot, setting up an ugly preselection stoush within the Coalition.

In her first public comments confirming her nomination for the Northern Territory Senate seat, held by Senator McMahon since the 2019 federal election, Ms Price said she respected her colleague’s work but had decided to run for the sake of the Territory.

“It is nothing personal at all,” Ms Price said. “I have the respect of many Coalition members, both Nationals and Liberal, and I know I can bring … a wealth of knowledge across many different areas, including the plight of marginalised Indigenous Australians.”

The looming preselection contest, on June 26, places pressure on Nationals leader Michael McCormack to hold onto the seat for the junior Coalition partner.

Country Liberal Party senators have for decades sat in the Nationals partyroom.

Jacinta Price with Prime Minister Scott Morrison in the electorate of Lingiari. Picture Gary Ramage

Ms Price kept her options open, saying that if successful she would take direction from the party as to which partyroom she belonged to. Many in the Coalition consider her a natural fit for the Liberals. The NSW Liberals Roseville branch held a fundraising event for Ms Price on May 17 with a guest list that included Queensland Liberal senator and Assistant Minister to the Attorney-General Amanda Stoker.

Senator McMahon warned it would be “very nefarious” of the Liberals to be fundraising for a candidate running against her.

“The Libs have been fundraising for Jacinta. If they are doing that knowing she’s going to run in the Senate, that’s an awful thing to be doing against their Nats colleague. That’d be pretty clear they’re trying to replace a Nat with a Lib,” she said.

Senator McMahon said Ms Price should instead be targeting the Labor-held marginal seats of Lingiari and Solomon.

Long-time Labor MP Warren Snowdon holds Lingiari on a margin of 5.46 per cent but will retire at the next election so the ALP will lose any incumbency factor.

Labor MP Luke Gosling will contest Solomon on a margin of 3.08 per cent.

“We need to win Solomon and Lingiari, we need to own at least one of them,” Senator McMahon said. “I believe Jacinta could. I think it’s wasted effort cannibalising your own when you could be out there winning a (lower house) seat.”

Senator McMahon said Mr McCormack and Nationals colleagues Bridget McKenzie, Matthew Canavan, Barnaby Joyce and Kevin Hogan had committed to being with her in the NT for the preselection contest.

Ms Price, who unsuccessfully contested Lingiari against Mr Snowdon at the 2019 election, said the Senate provided a better platform for her to “effect a real change”. She also conceded the NT Senate seat was easier to win than a lower house seat.

“Within the Senate, there’s often challenges being brought by individuals like (Greens) Senator (Lidia) Thorpe,” Ms Price said.

“I feel it’s important on key positions to be able to push back on that level of ideology that I believe is creating division within the parliament that there is no place for.”

There are just two NT Senate seats, with one traditionally going to the CLP and the other to Labor.

Nominations for the CLP Senate seat closed on May 14.