WITH a week remaining until early voting opens, the number of candidates contesting Carrum, Mordialloc, and Clarinda at the state election is growing.
The “sandbelt” seats, considered integral to the outcome of the election, are all currently held by the Labor Party. Incumbents Sonya Kilkenny, Tim Richardson, and Meng Heang Tak are all re-contesting their seats.
Kingston Council has tracked promises made by the major parties within the municipality. The Labor Party has promised $5 million for a pedestrian crossing between Chelsea Station and the shopping strip, $4 million to remove the Heatherton Road – Douglas Street – Lightwood Avenue roundabout, $2.5 million to upgrades at the Chelsea Football Club at Edithvale Commons, $2.5 million for the Keeley Park pavilion renovation and upgrade, $250,000 for the Patterson River Sculpture Trail, $250,000 for lighting upgrades at Dolomore Reserve, and $200,000 for landscaping and streetscape furniture for Dingley Village Shopping Centre.
The Liberal Party has pledged $6 million for Bonbeach YCW Football Club upgrades. The state opposition has also promised to return state-owned land near Mentone Station to the community (“Mentone open space an election issue” The News, 28/10/2026)
Nominations for candidates close shortly after publication deadline. The declared candidates for Carrum as of 7 November are: Sonya Kilkenny (Labor), Jeff Shelley (Liberal), Zoe Pegrum (Greens), Joshua Mathews (One Nation), Reema Ababneh (Victorian Socialists), Carolyn Moore (Animal Justice), and Harley Mackenzie (Legalise Cannabis).
The declared candidates for Mordialloc as of 7 November are: Tim Richardson (Labor), Paul O’Halloran (Liberal), Alex Breskin (Greens), Nadia Ticehurst (One Nation), Mahee Hossain (Victorian Socialists), Renee Thompson (Legalise Cannabis), and Lily Potucek (Family First)
The declared candidates for Clarinda as of 7 November are: Meng Heang Tak (Labor), John Paganis (Liberal), Caroline White (Independent), Conor Boyd-Eedle (Greens), Gavin Bain (One Nation), and Kit Message (Victorian Socialists).
Early voting commences 18 November ahead of election day on 28 November. For more information visit vec.vic.gov.au
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 11 November 2026