## Former Coalition Minister Disappointed by Lack of Female Candidates
Former Coalition cabinet minister Karen Andrews has expressed disappointment that her party has not preselected a woman to contest her long-held Gold Coast seat. No women were in the running for the recent internal Liberal National Party vote, which saw solicitor Leon Rebello chosen as the party's candidate for McPherson in the next federal election.
Andrews, who will retire at the next election, said she tried to encourage women to put their names forward but was unsuccessful. She attributed this to the negativity and criticism women often face in politics.
A review conducted after the 2022 federal election recommended the party adopt targets for 50% female representation in parliament within a decade. However, Andrews fears the number of women in parliament could decline further.
She emphasized that voters are not opposed to electing women, citing the success of teal independents. The issue, she believes, lies with major parties not putting forward enough female candidates in winnable seats.
Rebello, who won the preselection contest against three other men, acknowledged the importance of diverse representation. He pointed to his own background as someone from a different cultural background with private and public sector experience.
Political marketing lecturer Andrew Hughes believes the LNP missed an opportunity to promote female representation. He argues that the party needs to implement a quota system similar to the Australian Labor Party to achieve its goal of 50:50 representation by 2032. He believes that relying on merit-based selection alone is insufficient to overcome existing biases in the system.