Russell Northe
{{short description|Australian politician}}
{{Use Australian English|date=June 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2015}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix = The Honourable
| name = Russell Northe
| honorific-suffix =
| image =
| constituency_AM = Morwell
| assembly = Victorian Legislative
| term_start = 25 November 2006
| term_end = 26 November 2022
| predecessor = Brendan Jenkins
| successor = Martin Cameron
| majority =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1966|2|6}}
| birth_place = Traralgon, Victoria
| death_date =
| death_place =
| constituency =
| party = {{Plainlist|
- Independent (2017–present)
- National (2006–2017)
}}
| spouse =
| children =
| residence =
| university =
| profession = Business manager
footballer
football coach
| religion =
| signature =
| footnotes =
| website = [https://www.russellnorthe.com.au russellnorthe.com.au]
}}
Russell John Northe (born 6 February 1966) is an Australian former politician who was a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly from 2006 until his retirement in 2022.[http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/handbook/searchresult.cfm?menuid=1&memberId=1693 Parliament of Victoria Parliamentary Handbook] Prior to winning preselection by The Nationals for the seat of Morwell, he was a local Australian rules footballer.{{cite web |url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2008/gippsland/ |title=2008 Gippsland By-election |website=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date=24 January 2010 |date=10 July 2008}} He resigned from The Nationals in August 2017, and served the rest of his time in office as an independent member of parliament.{{cite news|title=Nationals MP to quit party over gambling, depression|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-28/russell-northe-victorian-nationals-mp-for-morwell-to-leave-party/8838126|access-date=28 August 2017|work=ABC News|date=28 August 2017|language=en-AU}} Following Northe's retirement at the 2022 state election, National member Martin Cameron won Northe's previous seat of Morwell.{{cite web |last1=Green |first1=Antony |title=Morwell (*) (Key Seat) - VIC Election 2022 |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/elections/vic/2022/guide/morw |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date=27 November 2022}}
Early life and education
Northe was born in Traralgon, Victoria and attended Traralgon High School, completing Year 11 in 1982. In 2006, Northe completed a Certificate IV in Business.
Political and parliamentary career
With repetitive television advertising and campaigning on the issues of workers' rights and bicycle paths, Northe was able to capitalise on divisions within some local branches of the Labor Party to win the seat.{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/vic/2006/guide/keysbyparty.htm|title=Key Seats by Party and Margin|year=2006|author=Antony Green|publisher=ABC News Online|access-date=24 January 2010}} Northe doubled the Nationals' primary vote, secured with the aid of Liberal Party and ex-Labor independent preferences.{{cite web|title=Nationals' resurgence continues in Vic election|website=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/australia/vic/gippsland/200611/s1798307.htm|date=27 November 2006}}
This win also served to help secure the Nationals' future as a political party in Victoria.{{cite news|title=Dogged Nationals stare down the doomsayers|newspaper=The Age|url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/victoria-votes/dogged-nationals-stare-down-the-doomsayers/2006/11/26/1164476071884.html|date=27 November 2006|location=Melbourne|first=Orietta|last=Guerrera}} Russell Northe joined fellow parliamentarians Peter Ryan and Peter Hall as the Nationals' state parliamentary representatives for Gippsland.
At the 2010 state election, Northe achieved the biggest pro-Coalition swing in the state to transform Morwell into one of the National Party's safest Victorian seats, with a two-party-preferred margin of 16.29% against Labor. Northe won Morwell on the primary vote, polling 56.24% in his own right, and won every polling booth except the small Yallourn North booth, where Labor recorded a narrow majority. With the Liberal/Nationals Coalition winning government, Northe was also appointed as Parliamentary Secretary for Small Business.
In 2014, Northe was elevated to Cabinet as Minister for Energy and Resources and Minister for Small Business. He held those ministerial portfolios until the defeat of the Napthine/Ryan Coalition Government at the 2014 state election. After the election defeat and the resignation of long-serving Nationals leader Peter Ryan, Northe pursued the party deputy leadership, but lost to first-term MP Steph Ryan.{{cite web|url=http://www.latrobevalleyexpress.com.au/story/2748826/deputy-ryan-a-step-in-the-right-direction-member-for-morwell/|title=Deputy Ryan a step in the right direction: Member for Morwell|work=Latrobe Valley Express|date=8 December 2014}}
On 28 August 2017, Northe resigned from the National Party due to stress, depression and gambling issues. According to media reports, he had accrued significant debts exceeding $750,000 owed to over thirty local businessmen, friends, constituents party members, and his own parliamentary leader Peter Walsh, partly due to gambling.{{cite news |last=White |first=Alex |date=2018-02-19 |title=Nationals Victorian MP hit up leader for cash |url=https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/nationals-victorian-mp-hit-up-leader-for-cash/news-story/e0af13c5a35c1e7fc165ea6b30d54ec8 |work=Herald Sun |access-date=2020-07-23}}{{cite news |last=White |first=Alex |date=2019-11-29 |title=MP Russell Northe 'has nothing' after running up $750K in debts |url=https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/mp-russell-northe-has-nothing-after-running-up-750k-in-gambling-debts/news-story/5887fe54ab9216de0b1c28a31da0bbe6 |work=Herald Sun |access-date=2020-07-23}} Those who were persuaded by Northe to lend him money were said to include former employees in his electorate office and a retrenched power station worker who lost a large portion of his redundancy package.{{cite web |url=https://www.latrobevalleyexpress.com.au/story/5774179/im-fit-to-stand-northe/ |title=I'm fit to stand: Northe {{!}} Latrobe Valley Express |website=www.latrobevalleyexpress.com.au |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181123070253/http://www.latrobevalleyexpress.com.au/story/5774179/im-fit-to-stand-northe/ |archive-date=2018-11-23}} Northe was narrowly re-elected at the 2018 state election, achieving 19.6% of the primary vote, but receiving enough preferences from the Liberal and National Parties to defeat the Labor candidate with a two-party preferred vote of 51.8%.{{cite web | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/elections/vic-election-2018/guide/morw/?nw=0 | title=Morwell - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) | website=Australian Broadcasting Corporation }} He pledged to be a "conservative independent" member.{{cite web|url=https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/conservative-independent-russell-northe-reclaims-marginal-morwell-20181206-p50kq7.html|title='Conservative independent' Russell Northe reclaims marginal Morwell|work=The Age|date=6 December 2018}}
In July 2022, Northe announced he would not recontest Morwell at the 2022 Victorian state election.{{cite news |title='Tired' independent Russell Northe joins list of retiring MPs after 16 years |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-07-26/russell-northe-independent-to-retire-at-victorian-election/101269116 |access-date=25 October 2023 |work=ABC News |date=26 July 2022 |language=en-AU}} In October 2022, he was charged with 45 offences by Victoria's Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC),{{cite news |title=MP Russell Northe facing 45 charges by anti-corruption commission |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-10-12/russell-northe-to-face-court-misconduct-by-ibac-false-documents/101526314 |access-date=25 October 2023 |work=ABC News |date=12 October 2022 |language=en-AU}} and on 25 October 2023, was sentenced to 21 months in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of misconduct in public office.{{cite news |title=Former MP jailed for gambling almost $180,000 of electoral office funds |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-10-25/russell-northe-sentenced-gambling-county-court-parliament/103014400 |access-date=25 October 2023 |work=ABC News |date=25 October 2023 |language=en-AU}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.russellnorthe.com.au Official Website]
- [http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/rrc Rural & Regional Committee – Parliament of Victoria]
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{{succession box | title=Member for Morwell | before=Brendan Jenkins | after=Martin Cameron | years=2006–2022}}
{{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Northe, Russell}}
Category:Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly
Category:National Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria
Category:Independent members of the Parliament of Victoria
Category:Traralgon Football Club players
Category:People from Traralgon
Category:21st-century Australian politicians
Category:Ministers for small business (Victoria)