Brand candidate Madeleine King’s home ties strong

Ms King, a lawyer, has come a long way since leaving the school, but Rockingham and Kwinana, where she was born, remain close to her heart.

“My connection to the area is unbroken. I was born in Kwinana and raised just around the corner in Shoalwater and spent a lot of time everywhere around here,” she said.

“Those connections that you have to the area and what you remember from your childhood and younger years play a huge part and have a massive impact on my desire to do what I can and deliver benefits for the area.”

Ms King has been chosen by the Labor Party to contest the seat of Brand after the announcement of Gary Gray’s retirement.

She said she was not just aiming to fill the shoes of Mr Gray, but also Kim Beazley and Wendy Fatin.

“Gary’s shoes are big ones to fill, but so are Kim’s and so are Wendy’s, so it is a bit daunting, but I like to think it’s a good time for a good local candidate,” she said.

Ms King sees Brand’s biggest issue as jobs “undoubtedly” and sees an outer harbour as part of the solution.

“Jobs for youth, as well as older people who find themselves on the back end of the mining boom and may be underemployed or unemployed,” she said.

“The Labor Party has a plan for more jobs and I want to be elected as their representative so I can deliver on that plan and ensure that the Labor Party does deliver on the infrastructure projects that we want to build in the area.

“That includes working on plans for an outer harbour, which would be a great step forward for the area.”

Ms King said while she was fully supportive of efforts to introduce marriage equality, she felt the current measures were divisive.

“I think the proposed plebiscite of the Turnbull government will not only be a waste of money but moreover it’ll cause division where it is not needed,” she said.

“I’d rather someone governed and we implemented it… I know the Labor Party stands for marriage equality and I’m right behind that.”

Ms King also said she supports affordable tertiary education, saying she was very proud of the Labor government’s legacy, which opened up opportunities to children in Brand to attend university more easily.