Greens candidate and Inner West Councillor Kobi Shetty has been elected as the next Member for Balmain in the NSW Legislative Assembly.
This is a historic win for the Greens both in NSW and across Australia, as it is the first time that a lower house Greens MP has retired and a Greens candidate has successfully retained the seat.
This election the Greens NSW achieved their strongest result on record, having retained Balmain and Ballina, and recording more than 50% of the primary vote to retain the seat of Newtown in the lower house. The Greens have newly elected Dr Amanda Cohn and re-elected Cate Faehrmann, to join Sue Higginson and Abigail Boyd in the NSW upper house.
The Greens are proud to have a 100 percent female party room.
Incoming Greens Member for Balmain, Kobi Shetty said:
"I am so grateful to the people of Balmain for putting their trust in me to be their next Greens Member for Balmain.
"Once again the Greens have made history in Balmain.
"Voters in Balmain have sent a clear message that they want action on climate change, they want integrity in politics, and real gambling reform.
"This community wants an MP who will be accountable to them, will hold NSW Labor to account and keep this government on track.
"My team and I are proud to have run a positive and honest campaign focused on the long-term changes our community needs and didn't rely on misinformation or negative attacks.
"This is a win that was powered by the community without a single dollar from a corporate political donor. We built an incredible grassroots campaign powered by hundreds of volunteers who knocked on doors, made thousands of phone calls and connected with people across the local area.
"While results won't be final for a few more days, the work for me starts today and I'm ready to hit the ground running.
"Thank you to my fellow candidates, to the Electoral Commission staff, our wonderful team of volunteers and every single person who has supported my campaign.
"I especially want to thank Jamie Parker MP for his 24 years of service to this local area, for his support and guidance throughout the campaign, and for trusting me to continue the work he has started with this community.
"I'm thrilled to join a historic all-female team of Greens MPs in NSW Parliament. We are ready to hold NSW Labor to account and push them further and faster on poker machine reform, tackling the climate crisis and returning integrity to NSW politics.
Greens Member for Newtown, Jenny Leong MP said:
"I am thrilled that Kobi Shetty will be joining our strong, committed Greens women team in NSW, and can't wait to see her bring the experience and skills she has to ensure our communities' priorities are at the heart of the next Parliament.
"Our community knows that having a Greens MP means we work hard everyday for them, for our community and for social and environmental change - and we are ready to start collaborating constructively with the next parliament to deliver on the much needed reforms to solve the climate and housing crises and respond to what communities and workers across the state have been crying out for.
"The good people in the electorate of Newtown have always led the way and been at the forefront of progressive change and so it is wonderful that we have achieved these historic results, and we're looking forward to how the next Parliament will work together to pass crucial legislation to improve the lives of people in NSW."
Greens MP Cate Faehrmann said:
"Thankfully, we've been able to kick the Liberal/National government out and ensure we have more Greens in the parliament. I can't wait to have Kobi Shetty join us as we continue pushing for our key priorities in the next parliament
"People know that the Greens will fight for our climate and environment, act on the housing and rental crises, and gambling reform. Support for the Greens is growing and Kobi's historic result is a testament to that.
"Our new additions of Kobi Shetty to our lower house and Dr Amanda Cohn to our upper house will ensure we will keep pushing for progressive change for NSW."
BACKGROUND
Kobi Shetty
Kobi Shetty is an Inner West Councillor representing the Baludarri (Balmain) ward. She is a fraud prevention specialist who has also worked in sustainability and community development.
Kobi lives with her three kids, husband and dog Zola in Lilyfield.
An overview of the Greens election result:
- Jenny Leong MP is the first Greens lower house MP in any jurisdiction in Australia to win a seat on primary votes, securing over 50%
- Tamara Smith, our only Greens regional lower house MP in the country, has beaten the Nationals on primary votes
- We have newly elected Dr Amanda Cohn to the NSW upper house
- Our Greens party room will be 100% women
