Wentworth by-election: Dave Sharma wins Liberal pre-selection

Mathias Cormann says Malcolm Turnbull’s support of David Sharma in his former seat is “great to see” and will influence voters.

Dave Sharma beat seven rival candidates. Picture: AAP

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann says it’s “great to see” Malcolm Turnbull strongly supporting David Sharma, who last night won Liberal pre-selection for Wentworth, as his replacement in the blue-ribbon Sydney seat.

“Obviously that is extremely helpful in helping us to retain the seat at the by-election coming up,” Mr Cormann told Sky News today.

Despite being pressured to make way for a female candidate, Australia’s former ambassador to Israel emerged victorious after a six-and-a-half-hour preselection battle at Easts Rugby Club in Rose Bay.

Senator Cormann’s comments come after Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s office warned key members of his ousted predecessor’s camp to stop leaking and destabilising his government.

Mr Turnbull tweeted from New York on Wednesday night, suggesting Home Affairs Minister and leadership rival Peter Dutton Section 44 status should be referred to the High Court to clarify his eligibility to sit in parliament.

Mr Sharma’s selection flew in the face of recent internal polling that showed a female candidate stood a better chance of holding the Harbourside seat.

Asked whether it was embarrassing that former Woollahra deputy mayor and liberal staffer Katherine O’Regan had received less than ten per cent of votes in the first round of the preselection, despite having Mr Morrison’s backing, Senator Cormann said preselections were not determined by prime ministers.

“No individual, no prime minister, no minister, nobody determines who the candidates are other than the preselection delegates, and 201 delegates in Wentworth listened to all of the presentations, were able to ask questions, and (were) most directly in a position to form judgement on who the best candidate would be, made a judgement that Dave Sharma is the best candidate, and congratulations to Dave, welcome to the team,” Senator Cormann said.

“As the Prime Minister says, it’s now back to work, onto winning the seat of Wentworth, and it’s great to see that Malcolm Turnbull as the Member for Wentworth over the last 14 years has so strongly come out in support of Dave Sharma.

Mr Morrison this morning tweeted his congratulations to Mr Sharma, describing him as “a quality guy with extensive experience and capability”.

“The best candidate won. That’s how it should be,” Mr Morrison said. “Of course I want to see more Liberal women in Parliament. But I always want to see the best candidate selected. That’s what members rightly decided last night. Thank you and well done to the selectors and a very big congratulations to David. Welcome to the team.”

[1/2] Big congratulations to David Sharma, our new Liberal Candidate for Wentworth. A quality guy with extensive experience and capability. The best candidate won. That’s how it should be. Of course I want to see more Liberal women in Parliament.

— Scott Morrison (@ScottMorrisonMP) September 13, 2018

[2/2] But I always want to see the best candidate selected. That’s what members rightly decided last night. Thank you and well done to the selectors and a very big congratulations to David. Welcome to the team.

— Scott Morrison (@ScottMorrisonMP) September 13, 2018

Senator Cormann said he had never discussed with Mr Morrison who the Prime Minister preferred in the contest for Wentworth.

“Scott Morrison did not have a vote in the preselection. He was not a preselection delegate,” he said.

“As the Prime Minister has indicated, he is keen to see more Liberal women in the parliament. All of us of course support him in that determination to achieve that into the future. We’ve had some very significant success in recent time on that front.

“This would have been another opportunity, but in the end it’s always important to select the best candidate, and the preselection delegates in Wentworth for the Liberal Party made the judgement that Dave Sharma, under the candidates who presented themselves was the best candidate, and it’s now on to winning the seat of Wentworth for the Liberal Party, retaining the seat of Wentworth for the Liberal Party, and as I say I’m very pleased that Malcolm Turnbull has come out so strongly in support of our Liberal candidate in Wentworth.”

Asked about how the Liberals should address their shortage of female MPs, Senator Cormann said they had to pursue “every single opportunity”.

“If you think about the Tasmanian Liberal ticket, two out of the three candidates in winnable positions are women,” he said.

“We’ve preselected the Senate ticket in Western Australia will be led by Linda Reynolds, a high quality, outstanding woman. We’ve got Amanda Stoker out of Queensland. We’ve got of course Georgina Downer re-preselected in the seat of Mayo.

“I mean right around Australia we are preselecting outstanding women. We’ve got to take every opportunity, but in Wentworth, quite rightly, the preselection delegates were asked to make a judgement who the best candidate was, and they determined that the best candidate was Dave Sharma, and we now all get behind helping him win, and that’s the job at hand.”

Support plummets for Liberals

Recent polling has shown support for the party in Wentworth has plummeted to an unprecedented 39 per cent.

While Mr Sharma lives outside the seat, residing on the upper north shore, Liberals hope his personal appeal and political credentials will win over Wentworth electors.

He has received support from John Howard and Mr Turnbull, who is a popular figure in his former electorate.

Scott Morrison’s choice for the seat, Katherine O’Regan was eliminated in the third round of voting with just 21 votes. Despite the Prime Minister’s wish for a female candidate, the other prominent woman in the field, Mary Lou Jarvis, went in the fourth round with just 30 votes. Eventually it was down to former member Peter King (50), Mr Shields (55) and Mr Sharma (96) before the final Sharma versus Shields vote. By endorsing Mr Sharma, Wentworth preselectors heeded the calls of John Howard and Malcolm Turnbull over those of Scott Morrison and factional powerbrokers.

Outside the rugby club Mr Sharma told reporters it was an honour to be preselected as the Liberal candidate in Wentworth.

“It’s a tough fight ahead of us in this seat but I’ll be throwing my all into it,” Mr Sharma said. “But I believe we can retain it and we can retain a Liberal government in Canberra.”

Mr Sharma beat 7 rival candidates including frontrunner, businesswoman and long-term political staffer, Katherine O’Regan.

Ms O’Regan, a former staffer to former federal sports minister Warwick Smith and president of the Double Bay Chamber of Commerce, was endorsed by Scott Morrison as the “frontrunner” female candidate, but failed to make it to the final ballot.

Liberal party sources told The Australian Mr Sharma was pitted against Mr Shields, the only Jewish candidate in an electorate where 12 per cent of voters are Jewish, in the final ballot. He won 119 votes to 83.

Former Wentworth member Peter King, Woollahra councillor Mary-Lou Jarvis, insurance lobbyist Richard Shields, cardiologist Michael Feneley, internet marketer Carrington Brigham and rheumatologist Maxine Szrama, were also in the mix.

The pre-selection meeting involved candidates giving an 8-minute speech and taking questions from local Liberal Party members before casting their votes in secret ballots.

Labor has already selected businessman and Tamarama Surf Lifesaving President Tim Murray to run in the seat. High-profile doctor Kerryn Phelps is expected to run as an independent.

The by-election for the Harbourside seat, which will decide if Mr Morrison retains the government’s one-seat majority, will be held on October 20.

Mr Turnbull won in 2016 with a primary vote of 62 per cent.