Jodie Louise Campbell (born 18 January 1972) is a former Australian politician. She was a member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

from 2007 to 2010, representing the

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

n seat of Bass for the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...

(ALP). She had previously served as deputy mayor of Launceston from 2005 to 2007.

Early life

Campbell was born in

Queenstown, Tasmania Queenstown is a town in the West Coast region of the island of Tasmania, Australia. It is in a valley on the western slopes of Mount Owen on the West Coast Range. At the , Queenstown had a population of 1,808 people. History Queenstown's hi ...

. She grew up in Launceston as one of four daughters raised by a single mother, Patricia Crooks, who worked at a

wool mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...

. Her grandfather was a returned soldier who spent several years as a Japanese prisoner-of-war in

Changi Prison Changi Prison Complex, often known simply as Changi Prison, is a prison in Changi in the eastern part of Singapore. History First prison Before Changi Prison was constructed, the only penal facility in Singapore was at Pearl's Hill, beside ...

. Campbell attended Ravenswood High School in Launceston's eastern suburbs. Prior to entering politics she worked as a legal secretary at Clarke and Gee Lawyers from 1989 to 1997 and then as a team leader with

Ansett Australia Ansett Australia was a major Australian airline group, based in Melbourne, Australia. The airline flew domestically within Australia and from the 1990s to destinations in Asia. After operating for 65 years, the airline was placed into admini ...

from 1997 to 2001. She was working at the call centre in Launceston when the airline collapsed, subsequently using her position as an

Australian Services Union The Australian Services Union (registered as the Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union) is a trade union representing workers in a variety of industries. The ASU is affiliated with the Australian Council of Trad ...

delegate to campaign for the recovery of staff entitlements.

Politics

Campbell served as an

alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members t ...

on the

Launceston City Council Launceston City Council (or City of Launceston) is a local government body in Tasmania, located in the city and surrounds of Launceston in the north of the state. The Launceston local government area is classified as urban and has a popula ...

from 2002 to 2007, including as deputy mayor from 2005. In January 2007 she won ALP

preselection Preselection is the process by which a candidate is selected, usually by a political party, to contest an election for political office. It is also referred to as candidate selection. It is a fundamental function of political parties. The presele ...

for the

Division of Bass The Division of Bass is an Australian electoral division in Tasmania. Geography Since 1984, federal electoral division boundaries in Australia have been determined at redistributions by a redistribution committee appointed by the Australian ...

, after reversing an earlier decision not to stand, and formally resigned from the council in September 2007. At the

2007 federal election This electoral calendar 2007 lists the national/federal direct elections held in 2007 in the de jure and de facto sovereign states and their dependent territories. Referendums are included, although they are not elections. By-elections are not ...

she narrowly defeated the incumbent

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

MP Michael Ferguson on a 3.6-point

two-party-preferred In Australian politics, the two-party-preferred vote (TPP or 2PP) is the result of an election or opinion poll after preferences have been distributed to the highest two candidates, who in some cases can be independents. For the purposes of TPP ...

swing. In her maiden speech she quoted

Ben Chifley Joseph Benedict Chifley (; 22 September 1885 – 13 June 1951) was an Australian politician who served as the 16th prime minister of Australia from 1945 to 1949. He held office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1945, follow ...

's " light on the hill" speech. In parliament Campbell served on three House of Representatives

standing committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

s. She was a member of the

Labor Left The Labor Left, also known as the Progressive Left or Socialist Left, is political faction of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). It competes with the more economically liberal Labor Right faction. The Labor Left operates autonomously in each s ...

faction, specifically a "breakaway sub-faction" known as the Progressive Policy Forum, associated with state MPs

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

and

Michelle O'Byrne Michelle Anne O'Byrne (born 6 March 1968) is Australian politician for the Australian Labor Party. She was elected in the 2006 state election to the Tasmanian House of Assembly in the division of Bass. Prior to her election to state parliamen ...

. On 30 October 2009, Campbell announced she would not be re-contesting her seat at the next election, citing family reasons. The following day, Sue Neales of '' The Mercury'' reported that Campbell was pushed into her decision by Labor Party powerbrokers, who had wanted to get rid of her for some time and considered her preselection a mistake. Neales reported that Campbell had two convictions for driving offences on her record, and Labor powerbrokers feared any further offences would potentially cause embarrassment for the party. They were also annoyed with the number of days she took off and her level of work within the electorate, fearing losing the seat if Campbell stood again.

Personal life

Campbell has two daughters. In August 2009, her de facto partner Roland Small appeared in court to face charges of assaulting her. It was alleged that he "punched Ms Campbell in the left eye, twisted her fingers and hit her in the stomach."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Jodie 1972 births Living people Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Bass Members of the Australian House of Representatives Women members of the Australian House of Representatives 21st-century Australian politicians 21st-century Australian women politicians Politicians from Launceston, Tasmania