Senator Keneally will replace the retiring MP Chris Hayes,who is leaving Federal Parliament after 14 years. Mr Hayes had hoped to nominate a local member of the community,lawyer Tu Le,as his successor. Sources say he and some of his colleagues are furious about Senator Keneally’s move.
The seat,which takes in Liverpool,Cabramatta and Fairfield,is one of the most diverse in the nation and the Opposition holds it by a 14 per cent margin.
Ms Le told the ABC on Thursday evening that Senator Keneally’s pending move was “pretty disappointing and disheartening”.
“Not just for myself but for the local community to be taken for granted in this way,” Ms Le said.
Supporters of Senator Keneally say she was approached by community members to contest the seat and any move would be of her own choosing and not driven by a factional fight for the number one spot of the Senate ticket.
Despite her seniority in Canberra,Labor’s home affairs spokeswoman has struggled to gain enough support to secure the number one position on the party’s NSW Senate ticket ahead of Senator O’Neill,who is supported by the influential Shop,Distributive and Allied Employees’ Association union.
The second place on the ticket is reserved for the Left faction,with incumbent Jenny McAllister likely to be re-endorsed,and the third position is widely viewed as unwinnable.