Kerry Jones Loses Liberal Pre-Selection Bid
October 10, 2000
Kerry Jones, the head of Australians For A Constitutional Monarchy has been defeated in a bid for Liberal Party pre-selection in New South Wales.
Jones secured 18 votes on the first ballot and then lost by 99 votes to 63 in a contest to choose candidates for the NSW Legislative Council.
She was defeated by lawyer Greg Pearce, a partner at Freehill, Hollingdale and Page.
Jones attacked the Liberal Party as "elitist", according to reports in today's newspapers, and accused Opposition Leader Kerry Chikarovski of being a captive of pro-republic forces in the party.
Jones came to prominence during the republic referendum campaign in 1999. Despite a campaign that urged pro-republic voters to vote no if they wanted the chance to elect a president, she criticised Federal Opposition Leader Kim Beazley over the weekend for his announcement of a new Labor approach to the issue.
October 15, 2000
In an intriguing sidelight to Jones' preselection, it has been revealed that a New South Wales Supreme Court judge, Mr. Justice Barry O'Keefe, wrote a glowing reference for Jones that was distributed to the members of the preselection conference.
The judge's intervention in the internal political activities of a political party is unprecedented.
O'Keefe was formerly head of the Independent Commission Against Corruption in NSW.
Jones also received endorsements from:
- Professor David Flint, chairman
of the Australian Broadcasting Authority
- former RSL president Major-General William "Digger" James
- Chancellor of
Sydney University Dame Leonie Kramer
- barrister John Armfield
- director of the Southern Cross Bioethics Institute, Rev Dr
John Fleming
- former High Court judge, Sir Harry Gibbs
- medical entrepreneur, Dr Tom Wenkart
- former mining magnate, Charles Copeman.
It is usually thought to be inappropriate for a serving judge to make a contribution to partisan political events of the day. O'Keefe claims he still has rights as a private citizen to express a point of view.
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