Liberal Partycandidate for Gembrook Simon Wildes. SIMON Wildes received a few pointers from the top when he began his first day of official duty as the Liberal Party candidate for Gembrook on Monday.
Opposition leader Robert Doyle welcomed Mr Wildes onto his team when the pair met in Officer during a visit to the area by Mr Doyle’s shadow Cabinet.
Mr Wildes, from Kallista, was officially endorsed last week as the Liberals’ challenger for the seat of Gembrook, which is expected to be a key battleground at the next state election.
Mr Doyle congratulated the newly endorsed Liberal Party candidate, describing him as the top choice in a very strong field.
“I asked for a local champion and they’ve sent me one in Simon,” Mr Doyle said.
“We’ve got to win this seat back again and we don’t underestimate the difficulty of that task.
“I think we’ve got the right candidate to convince people there is a better alternative.”
The seat of Gembrook, which takes in Berwick, Beaconsfield and the hills area, was won by Labor’s Tammy Lobato at the last state election.
Although Ms Lobato has earned a loyal following since scoring the upset win, Gembrook remains one of the most marginal seats in the state.
Mr Wildes is a longtime Liberal Party member with a background in financial management.
He said he was ready to embrace the challenge of political life.
“I guess you see things and want to improve them and so I thought I’d have a dip,” Mr Wildes said.
Mr Doyle was in Berwick for the recent preselection process that saw delegates pick Mr Wildes from a host of contenders including Cardinia Shire mayor Garry Runge, Cr Kate Lempriere, Andrew Ronalds of Jindivik, Simon Wilson and Ken Aldred.
Mr Wildes, 36, has been involved in a number of community groups and organisations, including the Emerald Winterfest and State Emergency Service.
He is married and has three young girls..
