Edmunds puts hand up
Alderman seeks Pembroke vacancy
CLARENCE alderman Luke Edmunds will nominate for the Legislative Council seat of Pembroke when a by-election is called to replace retiring Labor MLC Jo Siejka.
Ms Siejka has announced she will resign next month to move to Melbourne to be with her husband.
She was first elected at a byelection in 2017 to replace the late Liberal Attorney-General Dr Vanessa Goodwin, and then again in 2019.
Mr Edmunds, 40, a journalist and Bellerive father of three, will seek Labor’s endorsement for the seat.
As an alderman, he led the campaign to save Rosny Golf Course, moved for greater council transparency including live council meetings and has advocated for dog owners. He was Ms Siejka’s campaign manager in 2017, has been an alderman for four years and is Clarence Council’s representative on the Australian Coastal Council’s Association.
“With Jo making the difficult choice to leave, Pembroke needs an energetic new member who will represent the best interests of people on the Eastern Shore,” Mr Edmunds said.
“My family relies on the health and education systems and have seen first-hand how smashed these services have become under the current government. Households are being pounded by the cost of living and need elected members who’ll be in their corner.
“I delivered a new policy on inclusive playgrounds, fought against the unfair bin tax and made every single decision in the best interests of local people.”
Political analyst Professor Richard Herr said personality was a factor in Legislative Council elections.
“The electorates are relatively small and a local profile is important, which is why we’ve seen mayors do well because they are highly visible,” he said. “With Jo’s resignation a lot will depend on the public visibility of the candidate.”
Professor Herr said in 2019 the Liberal vote had been split between the party’s Kristy Johnson and Clarence alderman Tony Mulder.
Election analyst Dr Kevin Bonham said the result of the election could have a big impact on the upper house.
He said the four Labor MLCs and four progressive MLCs who often supported them were a majority in the 15member chamber.
“If Labor was to lose and the new winner was not of a Left persuasion it will make it a lot easier for the government in the upper house,” Dr Bonham said.
The Liberals have four members in the Legislative Council.
Dr Bonham said Ms Siejka had a 8.65 per cent margin from her 2019 win.
“It will come down to the quality of the candidates, so it will be interesting,” he said.