Jodie Louise Campbell (born 18 January 1972) is a former Australian politician. She was a member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

from 2007 to 2010, representing the

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

n seat of

Bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

for the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also known as the Labor Party or simply Labor, is the major Centre-left politics, centre-left List of political parties in Australia, political party in Australia and one of two Major party, major parties in Po ...

(ALP). She had previously served as deputy mayor of Launceston from 2005 to 2007.

Early life

Campbell was born in

Queenstown, Tasmania Queenstown is a historic mining town in the West Coast, Tasmania, West Coast region of the island of Tasmania, Australia. It is in a valley on the western slopes of Mount Owen (Tasmania), Mount Owen on the West Coast Range. At the , Queenstown h ...

. She grew up in Launceston as one of four daughters raised by a single mother, Patricia Crooks, who worked at a wool mill. Her grandfather was a returned soldier who spent several years as a Japanese prisoner-of-war in

Changi Prison Changi Prison Complex, often known simply as Changi Prison, is a prison complex in the namesake district of Changi in the eastern part of Singapore. It is the oldest and largest prison in the country, covering an area of about . Opened in 193 ...

. Campbell attended Ravenswood High School in Launceston's eastern suburbs. Prior to entering politics she worked as a legal secretary at Clarke and Gee Lawyers from 1989 to 1997 and then as a team leader with

Ansett Australia Ansett Australia, originally Ansett Airways, was a major Australian airline group based in Melbourne, Victoria. The company operated domestically within Australia, and from the 1990s, to destinations in Asia. Following 65 years of operation, ...

from 1997 to 2001. She was working at the call centre in Launceston when the airline collapsed, subsequently using her position as an

Australian Services Union The Australian Services Union (formally registered as the Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union) is a trade union representing workers in a variety of industries. The ASU is affiliated with the Australian Council ...

delegate to campaign for the recovery of staff entitlements.

Politics

Campbell served as an

alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...

on the

Launceston City Council Launceston City Council (or City of Launceston) is a Local government in Australia, local government body in Tasmania, located in the city and surrounds of Launceston, Tasmania, Launceston in the north of the state. The Launceston local gove ...

from 2002 to 2007, including as deputy mayor from 2005. In January 2007 she won ALP

preselection Preselection is the process by which a candidate is selected, usually by a political party, to contest an election for political office. It is also referred to as candidate selection. It is a fundamental function of political parties. The presel ...

for the

Division of Bass The Division of Bass is an Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in Tasmania. It includes most of the city of Launceston, Tasmania, Launceston and its surrounds. It has traditionally been a margin ...

, after reversing an earlier decision not to stand, and formally resigned from the council in September 2007. At the 2007 federal election she narrowly defeated the incumbent

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

MP Michael Ferguson on a 3.6-point

two-party-preferred In Australian politics, the two-party-preferred vote (TPP or 2PP), is the result of an opinion poll or a projection of an election result where preferences are distributed to one of the two major parties, the Labor Party and the Liberal/Natio ...

swing. In her maiden speech she quoted

Ben Chifley Joseph Benedict Chifley (; 22 September 1885 – 13 June 1951) was an Australian politician and train driver who served as the 16th prime minister of Australia from 1945 to 1949. He held office as the leader of the Labor Party (ALP), and was n ...

's " light on the hill" speech. In parliament Campbell served on three House of Representatives

standing committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...

s. She was a member of the

Labor Left The Labor Left (LL), also known as the Progressive Left, Socialist Left or simply the Left, is one of the two major political factions within the Australian Labor Party (ALP). It is nationally characterised by social progressivism and democra ...

faction, specifically a "breakaway sub-faction" known as the Progressive Policy Forum, associated with state MPs

David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...

and

Michelle O'Byrne Michelle Anne O'Byrne (born 6 March 1968) is an Australian politician for the Australian Labor Party, Labor Party and from 2024 until 2025, served as Speaker of the Tasmanian House of Assembly. O'Byrne was elected in the 2006 Tasmanian state ...

. On 30 October 2009, Campbell announced she would not be re-contesting her seat at the next election, citing family reasons. The following day, Sue Neales of ''

The Mercury Mercury most commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the closest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a chemical element * Mercury (mythology), a Roman deity Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Mercury (toy manufacturer), ...

'' reported that Campbell was pushed into her decision by Labor Party powerbrokers, who had wanted to get rid of her for some time and considered her preselection a mistake. Neales reported that Campbell had two convictions for driving offences on her record, and Labor powerbrokers feared any further offences would potentially cause embarrassment for the party. They were also annoyed with the number of days she took off (due to her rapidly declining mental health) and her level of work within the electorate, fearing losing the seat if Campbell stood again.

Personal life

Campbell has two daughters. In August 2009, her de facto partner Roland Small appeared in court to face charges of assaulting her. It was alleged that he "punched Ms Campbell in the left eye, twisted her fingers and hit her in the stomach."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Jodie 1972 births Living people Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Bass Members of the Australian House of Representatives Women members of the Australian House of Representatives 21st-century Australian women politicians Politicians from Launceston, Tasmania Australian MPs 2007–2010