Kerrynne Liddle (born 7 October 1967) is an Australian politician and the first Indigenous federal member of parliament from

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

. She is an Arrernte woman and member of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

. She was elected to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

on the party's ticket in South Australia at the 2022 federal election, to a term beginning on 1 July 2022. She was a journalist and corporate manager before entering politics.

Early life

Liddle was born on 7 October 1967 in

Alice Springs Alice Springs () is a town in the Northern Territory, Australia; it is the third-largest settlement after Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin and Palmerston, Northern Territory, Palmerston. The name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William ...

. She is one of five children born to Arrernte parents Geoff and Jean Liddle; her father was a construction worker and her mother was a nurse but later worked supporting high school students. Her sister Leanne was the first Indigenous woman to become a police officer in South Australia and her aunt Lorraine Liddle was the first Indigenous person to become a barrister in the Northern Territory. Liddle attended a public high school in Alice Springs and also studied at Katherine Rural College and later Roseworthy Agricultural College, working as a jillaroo in her early career. As a mature-age student she completed a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in management at the

University of South Australia The University of South Australia is a public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1991, it is the successor of the former South Australian Institute of Technology. Its main campuses along North Terrace are ...

and a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...

from the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...

. She completed a Vincent Fairfax Foundation Ethics Fellowship and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Career

Liddle worked as a journalist with the ABC in radio and television, and Channel 7 Adelaide. She later established her own public relations business, Precise Media Management, in Adelaide. In 2010, she served on the expert panel for the Review of Australian Government Investment in the Indigenous Broadcasting and Media Sector conducted by Neville Stevens. In 2011, Liddle was appointed as

Santos Limited Santos Ltd. (South Australia and Northern Territory Oil Search) is an Australian oil and gas exploration and production company, with its headquarters in Adelaide, South Australia. It owns liquefied natural gas (LNG), pipeline gas, and oil asse ...

's Aboriginal participation manager. She later worked for Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia as a manager at the Ayers Rock Resort, responsible for over 1000 staff, with 400 Indigenous employees. Liddle served on several boards, including GPEX for GP training and the Central Australian Aboriginal Congress. She also served as chair of the

Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute The Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute, usually referred to as Tandanya, is an art museum located on Grenfell Street in Adelaide, South Australia. It specialises in promoting Indigenous Australian art, including visual art, music a ...

, on the boards of the South Australian Housing Trust, Aboriginal Hostels Limited and Indigenous Business Australia, and as a member of the councils of the

and

Politics

Liddle became a member of 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) in 2006. She later stated in 2021 that she was a financial member for only one year and had only attended one meeting which was an introductory one. She then joined the Liberal Party and was preselected in sixth place on the party's Senate ticket in South Australia at the 2016 federal election. In 2019, Liddle began working as a staffer for Senator Anne Ruston. She was a candidate for the vice-presidency of the Liberal Party's state division in February 2020 but withdrew her candidacy due to illness. In February 2021, Liddle won preselection for the third position on the Liberal Party's Senate ticket in South Australia at the 2022 election. She was aligned with the party's moderate faction, although her preselection victory over fellow moderate Rachel Swift was largely due to support from the party's conservatives. At the 2022 federal election, Liddle was elected to a six-year term beginning on 1 July 2022; she was the last South Australian senator to be declared elected. She is the first Indigenous Australian elected to represent South Australia in the Senate and the first Indigenous woman to win a parliamentary seat in South Australia at either state or federal level. Liddle is a member of the Centrist faction of the Liberal Party.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Liddle, Kerrynne Living people 21st-century Australian politicians Members of the Australian Senate Members of the Australian Senate for South Australia Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Women members of the Australian Senate Indigenous Australian politicians People from Alice Springs Arrernte people 21st-century Australian women politicians 1967 births University of South Australia alumni University of Adelaide alumni