paul had an equal number of votes with the other candidate but won the ballot through dumb luck.

By Autumn 1995, I had been a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) for almost two years, and was very active across my branch and the small Northern Tasmanian group of Australian Young Labor (AYL). I was introduced to another AYL member in Launceston not long after I joined, and we spent time together at party functions and eventually started dating. She worked for a Labor Senator at that time, and my branch met at the office of the Member for Bass. Both Members of Parliament were aligned to the Right Faction of the ALP. I, by affiliation with these members, was associated with the Right, but never formally joined.

In May 1995, the annual state meeting for AYL was scheduled to be held in an old union building in Moonah, north of the Hobart City centre. After investing scores of hours in Northern AYL activities over the previous year, I was keen to finally meet some like-minded party members my age (under 25 years old), and looked forward to the day long meeting. My partner and I had travelled down the night before and had drinks with a few members to mark May Day celebrations. Little did I know that behind the scenes jostling was afoot for the leadership positions of AYL in Tasmania. Oblivious and disinterested in any leadership role I went to bed that night just looking forward to discussing ideas for social change.

The next morning other AYL members from around the state, but mostly Hobart, joined for breakfast at Salamanca and discussion began on the so called ‘prized’ role of State President of Young Labor. In other states, AYL Presidents often used the platform to launch political careers. I watched with interest as numbers were discussed and alliances explored. Members from the three factions, the Left, the Right, and the Centre Left, plus some unaligned members would decide the roles at the commencement of the meeting. Caught in the moment, I agreed to be placed on the ticket as the Right’s candidate for President. The Left had their star candidate, a uni student soon to graduate with a law degree. This candidate had been locked in for months before the meeting, and my nomination interrupted what was thought to be a formality. I believe my nomination was supported by the Centre Left in order to spoil the Left’s chances of getting their candidate in the leaders role.

As it worked out, my candidacy forced a vote. Both candidates spoke to the 28 AYL members assembled. Completely unprepared I spoke from the cuff about my background, and the consensus building work I had been doing with AYL members in the North. An unaligned member spoke to me afterwards commenting on how I had his vote because I spoke from the heart.

The vote was formally administered by the ALP’s Returning Officer. The Left had the strongest attendance, however they would need some unaligned members to vote their way if the Right and the Centre Left backed me. As it turned out we could not be separated; it was a tie. So the ALP rules were consulted and the deadlock was resolved, not by an another ballot, but by the order of the candidates as listed on the ballot. In the drafting of the ballot paper the Returning Officer had tossed a coin and I had won. My name was listed first, and the Left’s candidate was second. By virtue of this coin toss earlier in the day, I was declared the winner and took the helm of Young Labor in Tasmania at 20 years of age.

My first official duty was to chair the remainder of the conference. I got off to a very rocky start. I was inexperienced and needed significant support from the Vice President who graciously assisted me to chair the meeting in a manner consistent with the ALP rules and standing orders. To say I was out of my depth was an understatement but I persisted and, as clunky as it might have appeared, we got through the agenda and motions that would go to ALP State Conference a few months later. At the end of the day I was exhausted and flat. A key player from the Centre Left faction approached me and communicated his disappointment. He implied he had wasted the faction’s vote on me, and I should, “go learn something about politics, and may be go read a national newspaper or  something if you are going to have anything intelligent to contribute”. I was speechless, and drove back to Launceston pondering what I had got myself into.

I persisted for the next few months. In a time before video conferencing, I chaired meetings via telephone conference and attended some executive meetings in person in Hobart. My role as President and chair of the executive was torturous. When I was seated in Launceston, often alone, I was confronted with challenging behaviour from the Hobart members. Talking over each other, laughing regularly, and shuffling paperwork near the phone made it near impossible for me to participate, let alone chair effectively. I don’t recall one meaningful action from months of work.

At the ALP State Conference, held in Launceston in mid 1995, I was invited to provide the AYL annual report in front of 100+ delegates. The drafting of this report and speech was supported by an electorate officer from the office of the Member for Bass. It was a tricky report because I was also reporting on events and activities of the previous AYL executive that I had not been apart of. As my time to give the speech approached my anxiety peaked. The electorate officer gave me a pep talk and suggested wisely that I seize the moment as a learning opportunity. I was after all, just 20 years old. I was scheduled to talk after lunch, however the agenda moved faster than expected and I was called to the stage to speak early. Caught off guard, I clicked record on my micro-cassette recorder and left it on my seat. I collected my hand written speech and took to the stage. I delivered a satisfactory speech, received a polite round of applause from delegates, and proceeded to the bathroom to vomit. After regaining my composure I participated in the rest of the day’s proceedings and mingled with members that would later play leading roles in the Bacon Labor Government.

Weeks after the conference I listened to the recording of my conference speech. Upon reflection I had sounded nervous initially, but settled and did not ‘um or ahh’ at all. It was pretty bland, I made no attempt to use humour and communicated nothing of my personality. I gave myself a ‘pass- but must try harder’ and promised to work on public speaking and related self development. The killer blow was what I heard on the recording after the applause died down and my fellow delegates seated at the table could be heard. Among other unkind remarks was a peer that muttered, “are we suppose to clap for that”. I was shattered and knew I had to grow a thicker skin or get out.

As it turned out, my tenure as AYL President was torturous due to factional infighting and I resigned the post within six months. With my departure the 22 year old female law student I defeated was duly appointed to the role in September 1995. The candidate used the position strategically to build upon their emerging public profile and was duly elected to State Parliament on 24 February 1996 as a Member for Lyons. She was the youngest women, at that point, elected to an Australian Parliament. Defeated in the State Election in 1998, this politician returned to Tasmanian Parliament in July 2002 as a Member for Franklin. Serving continuously for 16 years in State Parliament, they held numerous Ministerial portfolios over successive terms, including Economic Development and the Arts, Health and Human Services, Treasury, and Deputy Premier. They became the 44th Premier of Tasmania, and Tasmania’s first female Premier, in January 2011, serving until the defeat of the Tasmanian Labor government on 15 March 2014.

Who was this?  It was The Honourable Lara Giddings.

I watched Lara’s career progress from the sidelines. She certainly raised her media profile as Minister for Health, facing media conferences several times a week. I appreciate as an outsider its difficult to fully understand the inputs into all decisions, but I like to believe that Lara gave it everything she had. The public was to learn later the toll her parliamentary career had on her personal time and significant relationships. I wish her well in her post political career. I still believe the top and tail of the concession speech Lara delivered on the night of the election loss in 2014 was the most gracious and respectful speech of a defeated politician that I have heard. Lara spoke from the heart.