Kylea Tink’s seat under redistribution threat
The Federal seat of North Sydney could be carved up and renamed under a pending redistribution of seats in NSW, posing a threat to independent MP Kylea Tink at the next federal election.
The Australian Electoral Commission’s redistribution will reduce house of representative seats in NSW from 47 to 46. It is expected that one of the North Shore seats – such as Liberal-held Bradfield and Berowra, or North Sydney – will be abolished. All three seats held by the ‘teal’ independents – North Sydney, Mackellar and Warringah – are currently under quota for enrolments and need more electors to make up the electorate population.
ABC chief election analyst Antony Greene told North Shore Living the issue had arisen because since the last NSW redistribution seven years ago, population growth had largely occurred in Western Sydney.
“To reach their quota, Mackellar and Warringah have to move west and that will eat into the North Sydney electorate,” Mr Greene said. “That’s just the simple geography of it. So Mackellar and Warringah expand. (But) what happens to North Sydney? Does it remain and take in areas from Bradfield or Bennelong, or does it get abolished and most of North Sydney ends up in another seat?”
Either way, North Sydney was ‘in trouble,’ Mr Greene said.
Ms Tink told NSL that she was ‘not worried at all’. “I think it’d be incredibly sad if the seat of North Sydney were to disappear. I think we bring a lot of value to the national discussion, as we have done since the time of federation.
“But I don’t want our community, myself or my team wasting any time worrying about it. There’s too much work to do.”
Ms Tink confirmed that regardless of the outcome, she would stand again for election. “Even if there’s not a seat to run for, I may still run in one of the others,” she confirmed.
Mr Greene says he suspects that North Sydney will be abolished. “(Then) we’ll have a major rearrange and Bradfield will come in (replacing North Sydney) and Kylea would be able to run in Bradfield, and most of her electorate will be in it.”
The election analyst said Ms Tink may face problems in this scenario. Independent candidate for Bradfield Nicolette Boele, who made the seat marginal for the first time in history when she ran against sitting member Liberal Paul Fletcher at the 2022 election, has already declared her intention to run again in 2025. Mr Fletcher now holds the seat on a 4.2 per cent margin against the independent. Ms Boele and Ms Tink were both backed by pro-environment campaigners Climate 200 in 2022.
The AEC is expected to issue its draft redistribution in April, before a final decision is made in October this year.