The Victorian Liberal Party’s decision to dump a popular local candidate in the knife-edge seat of Chisholm, for a former MP who lost her seat at the 2022 election, has been labelled ‘risky’.

Following the Australian Electoral Commission’s decision to abolish the seat of Higgins, Dr Katie Allen – who lost Higgins to Labor at the 2022 election – was selected by a Liberal Party committee to replace Chisholm candidate Theo Zographos.

Zographos is a councillor who had won preselection for the seat in December 2023.

Allen was originally supposed to run for Higgins again before it was abolished.

Zographos has not made a public statement since the decision to replace him in Chisholm, with his most recent social media stating that he hopes to return to council soon, albeit in a different role.

“I’m about to go into my final Monash City council citizenship (ceremony) as a councillor,” he said in his last post two weeks ago.

“It’s going to be sad for me tonight, but hopefully I can be back in a different capacity.”

That different capacity never eventuated, with the popular councillor being dumped from the nomination for Allen, who was running for the now-abolished seat of Higgins, nine months after he won pre-selection.

Zographos has been campaigning and building name recognition with Chisholm for the past nine months. Photo: Theo Zographos

The New Daily contacted Zographos for comment.

Dysfunctional?

The Liberal Party administration is grappling with a highly publicised failure to register councillors for Saturday’s local elections in NSW, and John Pesutto, leader of the opposition in Victoria, is currently preparing for a courtroom showdown with Moira Deeming.

Dr Zareh Ghazarian, a political scientist from Monash University, said issues like the dumping of Zographos and the upcoming court case could be damaging and distracting for the party.

“We’re not talking about the party’s policies. We’re not really talking about their plans. We are talking about the personnel,” he said.

“At a state level, the Liberal Party is facing all sorts of internal divisions and I’m not sure that these sorts of actions help build or mend bridges within the party.”

He said that choosing Allen over Zographos, without consulting local branch members, is a cautious and risky decision.

“Katie Allen has a high public profile and is well supported within the Liberal Party, particularly within parts of Chisholm that were once Higgins, her old seat,” Ghazarian said.

“It does potentially put those who have supported Zographos offside with the party, taking away their resources and support if they are upset.”

I am very grateful for the opportunity to be the Liberal Party’s candidate for Chisholm at the next election.

A lot of hard work is required, and I know it’s a big hill to climb, but together we can deliver a strong Liberal voice for our community. pic.twitter.com/DKYf7GQ1KX

— Dr Katie Allen (@DocKatieAllen) September 8, 2024

Changing seat

The Liberal Party lost Chisholm and Higgins to Labor in the 2022 election, but winning back the seat of Chisholm will be important for any chances of forming government.

New polling from RedBridge has shown that Chisholm is still ‘too close to call’, with the Liberal Party leading Labor 51-49 in its model, with Labor’s margin in the seat being cut in half when its borders changed and Chisholm absorbed about 40 per cent of the former Higgins electorate.

Ghazarian said that it is a “fine balance” for political parties to show that they are growing and evolving, but at the same time can put forward experienced candidates.

“Some would think that it is time to move beyond candidates who’ve already had their time in parliament, but I see this as a very conservative move by the party,” he said.

“They’ve gone back to candidates who are known candidates, but the question is whether they are still able to do it in a different political mood in Australia.”

Alongside the decision to make Allen the candidate for Chisholm, the Liberal Party also reaffirmed Amelia Hamer’s preselection for Kooyong, meaning there will be no return by Josh Frydenberg.

If Allen and Hamer win back the seats, it would help the Liberal Party towards achieving a target of 50 per cent of its parliamentarians being women by 2032, which was floated following its 2022 election defeat.