In a move that has surprised just about no one, the Australian Electoral Commission have confirmed that the Division of North Sydney will be abolished as part of the NSW Federal Redistribution.
In a statement made by The Hon. Susan Kenny AM KC, all objections (1030+), plus more than 250 commitments were carefully considered in the process. In the end, the decision stands to accept the proposal to abolish North Sydney, but also to retire the name of North Sydney altogether. Of the 46 remaining seats, 37 seats were left unchanged. The only adjustment being made in Northern Sydney is the shift of the boundary between Berowra and Bradfield, centred around a very small selection just south of Loreto Normanhurst.
The announcement effectively ends the “Save North Sydney” campaign being run by Kylea Tink and her office, guaranteeing that she will be looking for a new seat to move into, or explore other options. The options are believed to be limited, as Bennelong appears to be limited to a straight Labor-Liberal battle, Nicolette Boele is the preferred ‘Teal’ Candidate for Bradfield, Berowra does not have a solid ‘Teal’ base, and NSW has not elected an independent senator (excluding David Leyonhjelm) since 1975.
The announcement is a blow to the ‘Teals’ as it not only reduces the size of their representation in parliament, but also risks destabilizing their movement, as supporters now scramble to re-position themselves amongst the two remaining Teal candidates in the area. With some supporters of Zali Steggall and Nicolette Boele stating that they were distancing themselves from Kylea Tink, the re-focusing of the ‘Teal’ movement will be a significant challenge in the lead-up to the next election.
The biggest winner from the redistribution is Nicolette Boele, whose target seat of Bradfield will now shed the stronger Liberal-voting areas around Normanhurst, Waitara and Asquith, and pick up what was considered Kylea Tink’s base around Willoughby, Artarmon, St Leonards and Northbridge.
It remains to be seen what Tink will do next, given that, at this stage, it is hard to see an immediate future for her in parliament.