Elizabeth Lee (born 30 August 1979) is an Australian politician. She has been a member of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

and has served in the

Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly for the Australian Capital Territory, known in short as the ACT Legislative Assembly, is the unicameral legislature of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It sits in the Legislative Assembly Building, Canberra, Leg ...

since 2016, representing the electorate of Kurrajong. Before entering the ACT Legislative Assembly, Lee worked as a lawyer, before becoming a lecturer at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

and

University of Canberra The University of Canberra (UC) is a public university, public research university with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is from Belconnen Town Centre, and from Canberra's Civic, Australian ...

. On 27 October 2020, Lee was elected Leader of the

Canberra Liberals The Canberra Liberals, officially known as the Liberal Party of Australia (Australian Capital Territory Division), is the division of the Liberal Party of Australia in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The party has been in opposition in ...

and became Leader of the Opposition of the Australian Capital Territory, leading them to the 2024 election, where they were defeated. She was replaced as leader by Leanne Castley in the aftermath of the election. Lee was the first Asian Australian leader of a state or territory opposition.

Early life

Lee migrated to Australia from Korea at the age of seven. Upon turning 18, she moved to Canberra to pursue studies in law and Asian studies at the Australian National University. She completed Bachelors of Law and

Asian Studies Asian studies is the term used usually in North America and Australia for what in Europe is known as Oriental studies. The field is concerned with the Asian people, their cultures, languages, history and politics. Within the Asian sphere, Asian ...

, a Graduate Diploma in legal practice, and a Masters of Law from the

, and worked as a law lecturer and

solicitor A solicitor is a lawyer who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and enabled to p ...

Political career

Lee ran unsuccessfully for the

in the Molonglo electorate in

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, and for the

Australian House of Representatives The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Australian Senate, Senate. Its composition and powers are set out in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia. ...

seat of

Fraser Fraser may refer to: Places Antarctica * Fraser Point, South Orkney Islands Australia * Fraser, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb in the Canberra district of Belconnen * Division of Fraser (Australian Capital Territory), a former federal ...

in 2013, both times representing the

. She was elected to the Legislative Assembly in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

representing the new seat of Kurrajong. In Alistair Coe's shadow ministry, Lee was made Shadow Minister for the Environment and Shadow Minister for Disability in December 2016. In February 2018 following the death of Steve Doszpot, the Education portfolio was added to Lee's responsibilities. Following the Liberal Party's defeat at the 2020 election, Lee was elected on 27 October 2020 to replace Coe as party leader and

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the Opposition (parliamentary), largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the ...

. She is the first East Asian-Australian to lead a major political party in Australia. In 2021, Lee introduced Australian-first stealthing laws, which criminalised the non-consensual removal of a condom during sex. She also released an exposure draft for legislation that would mean harsher penalties for perpetrators of domestic violence. Following a Shadow Cabinet reshuffle on 7 December 2023, Lee became Shadow Minister for Education alongside her existing shadow portfolio responsibilities Housing Affordability and Choice. Climate Action, Energy and Emissions Reduction. Economic Development, Tourism and Major Projects, as well as Shadow Treasurer. During campaigning for the 2024 election, Lee made headlines when she was filmed flicking her middle finger at a journalist after an argument with a journalist. After leading the Liberals to their seventh consecutive loss at the 2024 election. By tradition, the Liberal party leadership is spilt after election losses. She would lose her reelection bid after her own deputy Leanne Castley ran against her. Castley announced that she had run against Lee due to concerns about trying to form government with the Greens in the aftermath of the election.

Political positions

Voice to Parliament Referendum

Lee voted Yes on the 2023 Voice to Parliament referendum, supporting the "Libs for Yes" campaign organised by former Liberal Chief Minister

Kate Carnell Anne Katherine Carnell (née Knowlman; born 30 May 1955) is an Australian businesswoman and former Liberal Party politician, who served as the third Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) from 1995 to 2000. Early life and ...

Territory rights

Lee is in support of 'territory rights' for the ACT. In 2018, Lee was one of four Liberals who voted alongside Labor to rebuke federal senators for voting against the rights of the territory. In a 2023 letter written by Lee on behalf of the Canberra Liberals, Lee stated that her party supports territory rights.

Personal life

Lee was born in

Gwangju Gwangju (; ), formerly romanized as Kwangju, is South Korea's list of cities in South Korea, sixth-largest metropolis. It is a designated Special cities of South Korea, metropolitan city under the direct control of the central government's Home ...

, South Korea and migrated to Australia in 1986 when she was seven years old. She grew up in Western Sydney and moved to

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

at 18 to study law and

at the

. She has lived and worked in inner Canberra since 1998. Lee lives in the inner south with her partner, Nathan, and 2 daughters.

Notes

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Elizabeth 1979 births Living people Liberal Party of Australia members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly Members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly Australian National University alumni Australian politicians of Asian descent South Korean emigrants to Australia 21st-century Australian politicians Women members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly 21st-century Australian women politicians Australian people of Korean descent Australian solicitors