The Liberal member that ousted Moira Deeming from the party’s upper house ticket, threatening to end her political career, could sensationally withdraw his candidacy.
Dinesh Gourisetty beat Deeming on Sunday in a preselection for the party’s candidates for the Western Metropolitan Region at the upcoming November election.
Gourisetty beat Deeming and her fellow MP Trung Luu in a vote yet to be endorsed by the party’s state executive. Two sources said Gourisetty received 39 votes, Deeming 26 and Luu three. The final breakdown is not publicly released, and other media are reporting a slightly different tally.
Luu retained the second position.
But Gourisetty, an Indian community leader, was on Monday facing pressure to stand down over a character reference he made for a man facing grooming charges in 2024.
The party, armed with this information, said his position as No.1 on the ticket would be difficult to endorse.
Party sources unable to speak publicly about internal issues said they believed he was withdrawing as a result. However, The Age has been told he is yet to do so.
More to come
Rachel Eddie is a Victorian state political reporter for The Age. Contact her at rachel.eddie@theage.com.au, rachel.eddie@protonmail.com, or via Signal at @RachelEddie.99Connect via X or email.From our partners
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: www.smh.com.au
