The 2023 Aston byelection is growing ever near, with two women running to become the suburban Melbourne electorate’s next House of Representatives member on April 1.
Mary Doyle represents Labor as the running candidate, and Roshena Campbell is contesting for the Liberal Party.
Triggered by the resignation of disgraced Liberal MP Alan Tudge, who had held the seat for 13 years, this high stakes election is considered to be leader of the opposition, Peter Dutton’s first major test.
So, who are these two women and what do their policies look like?
Mary Doyle
Raised in Echuca, Victoria, Doyle has lived in Melbourne’s outer east for 35 years.
She attended TAFE to study Performing Arts with a background in professional singing. At age 25, Doyle was diagnosed with breast cancer and says the experience taught her the importance of sickness benefits and healthcare.
Now with two children, Doyle is employed by HESTA as a Key Stakeholder Relations Specialist.
With a remit to create a better future for the local community, Doyle is standing by the Labor Party’s policy platform.
.She’s specified that her focus will be on “easing the pressure on families and helping households manage their budgets”, as well as being “a representative who will back Medicare and affordable health”.
Doyle was Labor’s candidate in the previous byelection for Aston, and she told StarMail that the reason she’s motivated to run again is because she believes politics needs to be more representative of the local community in the outer-east.
“I really wanted to see more women represented in Parliament, especially more women who’ve had real-world experiences,” Doyle said.
“We’ve got a lot of lawyers and barristers in Parliament already, especially men with that background.”
Roshena Campbell
Roshena Campbell moved to Melbourne as a 20 year-old and has served as a City of Melbourne Councillor since 2020.
She works as a barrister in commercial law and corporate governance, but before that, Campbell was a solicitor with a leading national law firm for nearly a decade.
Having represented some of Australia’s largest companies as well as state and local government bodies, Campbell has also served through a number of Royal Commissions and provided pro bono legal services. She has volunteered with and served on the committees of a number of non-profit organisations.
Campbell is married to Herald-Sun weekend national political editor James Campbell and is the mother of three children. If elected, she’ll be the first woman of Indian heritage to serve in the House for the Liberal Party.
Following Anthony Albanese’s election as prime minister and during her time as Melbourne councillor, Campbell has been openly critical of Labor’s expanded childcare policy. She’s received criticism for this, however, as it was revealed she’d been reimbursed $30,000 for childcare costs for her own children.
Talking to StarMail, Campbell spoke on her accomplishments as councillor, saying she was proud to have supported small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Cutting fees, cutting the amount of red tape, we delivered a rates discount for every resident and ratepayer across Melbourne when other councils increased rates,” Campbell said.
She’s also highlighted that if elected, she’ll focus attention on the rising cost of living and local infrastructure projects.
Correction: An earlier version of this piece stated Mary Doyle was “now married”. She has not married again. It also said she continues to work with a number of unions, however, her employment has been with HESTA since August 2022.