D-day for Moira Deeming as she faces preselection challenge for Victorian Liberal seat | Victorian politics

Moira Deeming’s political future within the Victorian Liberals will be decided behind closed doors on Sunday in the party’s final preselection battle for upper house seats.

Liberal members were due to gather at party headquarters for the western metropolitan area convention, where Deeming faces a serious challenge from Dinesh Gourisetty, a leading figure in Melbourne’s fast-growing Indian community.

Upper house lawmaker Trung Luu was also vying for the top spot on the list.

Gourisetty, Luu and Tim Beddoe, a former Liberal candidate for the seat of Maribyrnong in last year’s federal election, have also nominated candidates for second place.

Deeming was among four Conservative upper house MPs whose preselections were contested.

His first primary in 2022 has sparked controversy over his views on issues such as abortion and transgender rights.

His profile increased after he was kicked out of the Liberal party room in 2023.

The expulsion came after he threatened to take legal action against then-leader John Pesutto for comments he made after attending a rally that was raided by neo-Nazis. Ultimately, Deeming won the smear battle, leading to Pesutto losing the lead in 2024.

He was brought back into the party room by his successor, Brad Battin, and appointed “the leader’s representative to the western suburbs”; this post was not continued under current leader Jess Wilson.

Despite the backing of high-profile Conservatives including former prime minister Tony Abbott and media commentator Peta Credlin, Liberal sources have suggested for months that Deeming would not be up to the challenge.

Gourisetty is understood to have strong support in the west suburban branches, while the party’s executive committee is more moderate under chairman Philip Davis.

Wilson, who said he would vote for every sitting MP in the preselection ballot, gave Deeming a reference describing him as “a clear and effective advocate for our party’s values ​​in an area of ​​Melbourne where people are increasingly interested in voting for change”.

“The Liberal party needs candidates like Moira in Melbourne’s west, which will be a crucial battleground for the 2026 state election,” Wilson wrote.

Abbott said Move to oust Deeming was a ‘death wish’Credlin described him as a “rare individual” capable of uniting conservatives, disaffected Labor voters, working class and immigrant communities. “I have never met anyone more determined, more resilient, and more fearless than Moira,” it reads.

During the primary election process, Deeming filed a complaint with party leadership, alleging irregularities in the delegate selection process, including early voting, failure to carry out ID checks, and allowing ineligible members to vote in various branches. He had called for the ballots to be declared invalid and redrawn, but the administration rejected his request.

There were also internal discussions about a possible switch to One Nation should Deeming lose the preselection contest; but his supporters insist he wasn’t thinking about it. A senior Liberal source claimed concerns about branch votes were “setting the stage” for a potential departure.

About 70 people were expected to attend Sunday’s vote, including delegates from the western suburbs branches, a random pool of metro Melbourne members and board members. The phones of those who attended the meeting will be confiscated and the final result is expected to be received around 15:00.

It comes after Bev McArthur, a Conservative powerbroker and leader of the opposition in the upper house, survived a challenge from former Geelong mayor Trent Sullivan on Saturday. McArthur will top the western Victorian rankings, with conservative Graham Watt, a former lower house state MP, in second place.

A source closer to McArthur called the win a “crushing blow” to Davis’ moderate faction and “a rebuke to those in the party who underestimated Bev’s popularity and community support.”

Last weekend Renee Heath braved the challenge from journalist and author Sue Smethurst for the top spot in eastern Victoria. Ann-Marie Hermans was beaten to second place by Phillip Pease in voting in the southeast metro area.