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Written by The Tweed Shire Echo
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Thursday, 04 February 2010 |
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The fight for the federal seat of Richmond is now a three-way all-female contest after the Liberal Party belatedy announced that former mayor Joan van Lieshout would stand as their candidate.
It will be the first time the three major parties have all fielded female candidates and the first three-cornered contest since the National’s Larry Anthony lost to Labor’s Neville Newell in 1996.
Cr van Lieshout, who has been waiting months to get the green light from the party, said she was honoured to be selected.
‘I understand the issues which are important to this community and believe I can be a strong voice for the people of the Tweed,’ said Cr van Lieshout, who opened her own office after councillors dumped her as mayor last year.
She joins the National’s candidate Tania Murdock, a Pottsville-based businesswoman and mother of three, in trying to win the seat held by Labor MP and Minister for Ageing Justine Elliot since 2004.
Ms Murdock and Cr van Lieshout face an uphill battle to wrest the seat from Ms Elliot who comfortably held it at the last election in 2007.
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