Deputy Liberal leader, Sussan Ley, has been spared an embarrassing preselection contest after her would-be opponent was blocked from running against her in Farrer.
Guardian Australia understands that former state executive member, Jean Haynes, has had her candidacy blocked by the NSW Liberals’ nomination review committee, effectively preventing her from contesting the preselection ballot.
On Friday evening the state executive also unanimously ratified a decision of state director Chris Stone to expel the conservative powerbroker Christian Ellis, a key backer of Haynes and architect of an attempt to remove Ley before the 2022 election.
In an email to members of the Deniliquin branch, seen by Guardian Australia, Stone said he had decided to discipline five office bearers – which included Ellis but not Haynes – for scheduling two meetings in August that proposed to expel “several long-standing, loyal and hardworking members”.
Stone said these issues “further damaged” the “reputation of the division” and had caused the federal parliamentary leader, Peter Dutton, to be “embarrassed”.
The nomination review committee which blocked Haynes is constituted by Stone, NSW Liberal state president Jason Falinski, the federal leader’s representative Marise Payne, and the Farrer conference president.
Ley was one of several Liberals facing challenges, including Scott Morrison ally Alex Hawke, manager of opposition business, Paul Fletcher, and MP Melissa McIntosh.
When questioned in July, Dutton indicated his support for the sitting members but refused to say whether he would intervene to prevent the preselection stoushes.
Conservatives believe they are likely to unseat McIntosh from her western Sydney seat of Lindsay. They had claimed they were a good chance of removing Ley from Farrer in south-west New South Wales, although Ley’s supporters had maintained she was on track to comfortably retain preselection with a vote of up to 70 to 80% of preselectors.
In July, Peter Dutton told reporters he would “provide whatever support is needed to my colleagues: Sussan Ley, obviously as deputy, and Melissa, who’s done a great job and is a very popular local member, and similarly other colleagues that might be challenged.”
“As we know, in the Liberal party and Labor party sitting members can be challenged,” he said. “There’s a preselection body that comes together made up predominantly of local members of the party. So that process will roll out. But I want them to be re-endorsed by the party.”
Ellis had pushed for Ley’s removal before the 2022 poll, before an intervention protected Ley from challenge by allowing a three-person panel including Scott Morrison and then Liberal premier Dominic Perrottet to hand-pick candidates in nine seats.
Earlier this year, Ellis reportedly failed to respond to summonses to appear before a NSW parliamentary inquiry into alleged impropriety at Hills Shire Council. The inquiry heard allegations that Ellis had asked a businessman for a $50,000 contribution in 2019 to “get rid of Alex Hawke, stack his seat”.
In July, Ley declined to comment on the preselection challenge against her.
“Anyone is entitled to put their hand up and put their name forward for preselection – that’s the democratic process within our party,” she said.
Ley said the cost-of-living crisis was “the fight that I’m having” around the country including in her electorate of Farrer.
Guardian Australia sought comment from Haynes and Ellis.
