A western Sydney mayor is considering a tilt at federal politics in a bid to prevent Labor from parachuting Kristina Keneally into the seat of Fowler.
Fairfield Mayor Frank Carbone has said he or Deputy Mayor Dai Le may run as independents at the upcoming election.
The Daily Telegraph reported that both councillors may run and preference each other, or Ms Le could run with Mr Carbone’s support.
Asked about the report on Monday, Mr Carbone hinted at running but said he was yet to make his mind up.
“If our community ultimately decides that they want a local representative to be there for them and they want it to be a contest and for them to express their views, well then maybe one of us will run,” he told Sydney radio 2GB.
“The story did say we are thinking about it and that is certainly something we have discussed … But we haven’t made up our minds yet. I certainly haven't. It’s something that I’d need to consider with my family.”
Fowler is a safe Labor seat that encompasses part of the Fairfield local government area and which the party holds on a 14 per cent margin.
Mr Carbone said any bid for the electorate would be prompted by concerns that Senator Keneally wouldn’t be a strong enough advocate because she isn’t from the area.
The former NSW Premier-turned senator made headlines in September last year when she was announced as the lower house candidate in Fowler, ousting Tu Le in the process.
Ms Le, a Vietnamese-Australian lawyer, was meant to run for the party with the support of retiring incumbent MP Chris Hayes.
But Senator Keneally was allocated Fowler after factional infighting cast her upper house seat in doubt.
Mr Carbone said he had met Senator Keneally and she “seems like a lovely lady” but he questioned whether she would be able to fight for local issues.
“This isn’t about a personal issue, this is just about our local community,” he said.
“If I decided to run to be the mayor of the Northern Beaches and I live out in Fairfield, would people accept that? Would people be happy with that?”
Mr Carbone is a former Labor councillor who was dumped by the party but went on to win the 2016 local government election as an independent mayor.
He rose to prominence alongside other western Sydney mayors during the city’s 2021 coronavirus lockdown.
“I was in the Labor Party for 20 years so nothing really surprises me with the Labor Party after what they did to me,” he said on Monday.
“I don’t want to be a commentator on what the Labor Party should or shouldn’t dxjmtzywo, but what I will say is it’s important to have local people that fight for the local area.”
Ms Le is a former Liberal. The party is yet to name its candidate for Fowler for this year’s federal election.
