Senator
Marielle Smith
Senator for South Australia
Assumed office
1 July 2019 (2019-07-01)
Personal details
Born
Marielle Catherine Smith

(1986-12-30) 30 December 1986 (age 37)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Citizenship
  • Australian
  • British (to 2018)
Political partyALP
Alma materAustralian National University
London School of Economics
OccupationPolitician
Websitewww.mariellesmith.com.au

Marielle Catherine Feuerherdt Smith (born 30 December 1986) is an Australian politician. She is a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and has served as a Senator for South Australia since 2019.

Early life and education

Marielle Catherine Feuerherdt Smith[citation needed] was born 30 December 1986 in Sydney.[1] Her mother was born in the United Kingdom and she held British citizenship by descent until renouncing it in 2018 prior to running for parliament.[2] Smith attended University Senior College in Adelaide.[3]

She holds the degrees of Bachelor of Arts from the Australian National University and Master of Science from the London School of Economics.[1]

Career

After graduating from ANU she joined the Australian Public Service through the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet's graduate program.[3]

Smith has undertaken volunteer work with non-government organisations in Ghana and Sierra Leone.[3] She is a former board member of Transit Systems, a bus company co-founded by her father Neil.[4][5] She can drive articulated buses.[6]

Politics

ALP

Smith joined the Australian Labor Party (ALP) at a young age. She worked for Labor MP Kate Ellis as a researcher (2005–2008) and ministerial adviser (2010–2012), and later as a senior policy adviser to Prime Minister Julia Gillard. She regards both Ellis and Gillard as mentors.[7]

In 2017, Smith was elected to the ALP state executive and state council. She also served as a delegate to the Australian Labor Party National Conference.[1] In 2018, she was a preselection candidate for the Division of Adelaide.[8]

Senate

Smith was elected to the Senate at the 2019 federal election. She is a member of several Senate committees.[1] She has been identified as a member of the Labor Right faction.[8]

In her maiden speech to the Senate, Smith called for Labor to retain its 2019 election policy of funding preschool for three-year-olds "to ensure all children can access world-leading early education and care, regardless of what their parents do, how much they earn or where they live."[9]

Personal life

Smith is married with two children and three step-children.[10] Her husband Clint Feuerherdt is the managing director of SeaLink Travel Group and former CEO of Transit Systems.[11]

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Senator Marielle Smith". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  2. ^ Smith, Marielle. "Qualification Checklist" (PDF). Australian Electoral Commission. p. 11. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 May 2019. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  3. ^ a b c "USC Old Scholars Update: Marielle Smith (Class of 2004)". University Senior College. 29 May 2015. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  4. ^ "Transit Systems new depot". Australasian Bus & Coach. 21 September 2016. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  5. ^ "In Transit". Coach & Bus. 14 May 2014. pp. 32–34. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  6. ^ Mayfield, Greg (25 January 2019). "Labor candidate Marielle Smith visits Pirie auto-shop". The Recorder. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  7. ^ Gailberger, Jade (20 May 2019). "Meet SA's newest Labor Senator, Marielle Smith". The Advertiser. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  8. ^ a b Harmsen, Nick (13 April 2018). "New South Australia electoral boundaries serve Labor food for thought as Mark Butler waits on a seat". ABC News. Retrieved 28 August 2020. Marielle Smith, a one-time adviser to Ms Ellis and a current adviser to former Prime Minister Julia Gillard has confirmed to the ABC she intends to nominate for the seat when preselection opens.
  9. ^ Gailberger, Jade (11 September 2019), "Expand, don't abandon preschool policy, Senator Marielle Smith warns in maiden speech", The Advertiser, retrieved 24 August 2020
  10. ^ "Marielle Smith". Australian Labor Party. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  11. ^ "SeaLink gears up for $635m buyout of Transit Systems". AdelaideNow. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
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