In short:
Elouise Massa says she will run as an independent for Manly at the upcoming state election, after incumbent James Griffin revealed he would not contest the seat.
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he → say → seat
Ms Massa successfully campaigned to transfer Northern Beaches Hospital into the public system after the death of her son Joe.
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Massa → campaign → son
The NSW election will be held in March next year.
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election → hold → March
Kellie Sloane and the NSW Liberals face a fresh challenge ahead of the March election, with Elouise Massa announcing she will contest the seat of Manly as an independent.
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she → face → independent
It comes just days after Liberal frontbencher James Griffin revealed he would not recontest the northern beaches seat.
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he → come → seat
Ms Massa already has a high profile in the community, having successfully spearheaded a campaign to transfer Northern Beaches Hospital to public hands, following the death of her son Joe in 2024.
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Massa → have → 2024
A review identified multiple failures in the two-year-old's treatment and the Massa family's campaign also resulted in a new system by which families can escalate concerns over a child's care.
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families → identify → care
It also led to "Joe's Law" which bans future public-private partnerships in major hospitals.
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which → lead → hospitals
Ms Massa said her family's campaign had shown her what can happen when "courage in the community is met by people in government who genuinely listen and act".
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who → say → government
"I am not the same person I was before Joe died,"she said.
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Joe → say → ?
"Creating meaningful change has become a vocation.
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Creating → create → change
"It's my way of saying thank you to our community for backing [my husband] Danny and me through our campaigns."
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It → say → campaigns
The former journalist from North Balgowlah said people have stopped her in the street and told her to "keep going".
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people → say → her
"This is how I want to keep going, by listening, discerning, and taking our community's voice to parliament."
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I → want → parliament
Ms Massa said she planned to advocate for the environment, equality and integrity in NSW parliament.
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she → say → parliament
"Over the past two years we have saved lives and the reforms we have driven within government because I'm a strong community advocate, [who] is going to continue to make change," she said.
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she → save → change
Liberals risk losing more territory
The seat of Manly has been held by The Liberal Party for almost 20 years, after it was won by former premier Mike Baird.
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it → risk → Baird
However, between 1991 and 2007 it was held by independent MPs — first Peter Macdonald and then David Barr.
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it → hold → MPs
At a federal level, the Manly area is represented by teal independent Zali Steggall, who unseated former prime minister Tony Abbott in the seat of Warringah in 2019.
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who → represent → 2019
The Liberals are yet to announce their candidate to replace Mr Griffin in Manly, but the party is expected to campaign hard to keep a foothold on the northern beaches.
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party → announce → beaches
In 2024, independent Jacqui Scruby won the seat of Pittwater from the Liberals in a by-election.
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Scruby → win → election
A year earlier, independent Michael Regan won the seat of Wakehurst in the general election.
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Regan → win → election
Ms Massa said an independent would better serve the needs of the community, vowing to campaign on issues like healthcare, housing and transport.
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independent → say → healthcare
"I've seen what happens when nobody is held accountable and I've seen what can happen when a community demands better,"she said.
"
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community → see → ?
I'm running because the Member for Manly should answer to the people who live here, not to a party room."
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who → run → room
Health Minister Ryan Park said he has known Ms Massa for a number of years and she would make "a fine member of parliament".
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she → say → parliament
"She has shown to be a terrific advocate under the most difficult of circumstances," he said.
"She cares deeply about community, she cares deeply about things like healthcare services, and I wish her all the best."
When asked if NSW Labor would consider working with her, he said it would be "a very difficult seat for us to win".
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us → show → her
The Aporia