Prior to her candidacy at the 2022 state election, Wilson was Executive Director of Policy at the Business Council of Australia. She is the daughter of former state MP Ron Wilson.
Political career
Prior to her candidacy for the Kew seat, Wilson worked as an adviser to former federal energy minister Josh Frydenberg and as Executive Director of Policy at the Business Council of Australia.[1] Additionally, she was a former president of the Victorian Young Liberals in 2016.[2] During her time as the leader of the Young Liberals, she faced and narrowly survived a challenge from self-described 'small-l-liberals', over frustration with the influence of the Institute of Public Affairs, a conservativethink tank.[3]
Wilson was preselected to be Liberal candidate for the traditionally safe Liberal seat of Kew after defeating a number of pre-selection candidates including a senior Victorian Liberal figure, David Davis.[1] At the 2022 Victorian state election, she defeated teal independent Sophie Torney (who later became the Mayor of Boroondara) and Labor candidate Lucy Skelton.[4]
On 18 December 2022, Liberal Party leader John Pesutto announced that Wilson would join the opposition front bench becoming the shadow minister for finance, shadow minister for economic reform and regulation, and shadow minister for home ownership and housing affordability.[5] On 2 October 2023, as part of a shadow cabinet reshuffle, Wilson became the Shadow Minister for Early Childhood and Education in lieu of Home Ownership and Housing Affordability, retaining the Shadow Minister for Finance, and Shadow Minister for Economic Reform and Regulation portfolios.[6]
On 26 December 2024 she announced that she would nominate for the leadership of the Victorian Liberal Parliamentary Party if the following day's spill motion was successful.[7] She was eliminated in the first round of voting.[8] She was subsequently made shadow minister for education and shadow minister for industry and economic growth, replacing her previous portfolios.[9][non-primary source needed]
After a shadow cabinet reshuffle caused by the resignation of two senior Liberal MPs, on 11 October 2025, Wilson was given the senior position of Shadow Treasurer of Victoria, replacing her other portfolios.[10]
In October 2025, the ABC reported that Wilson is the most likely person to succeed Brad Battin amid growing frustration among MPs of the Victorian Liberal party.[11]
On 14 October 2025, Wilson spoke against the treaty legislation, claiming that the treaty "bill should concern all who value the rule of law and the separation of powers that underpin our democracy – any Victorian who values the foundational democratic principles upon which our system of government and our society are built."[12] Despite this, Wilson joined three fellow Liberal MPs in applauding the speeches of Aboriginal activists who spoke in favour of treaty, during parliamentary debate on the Statewide Treaty Bill 2025.[13]
On 17 November 2025, ABC News reported that a cross-factional delegation of Liberal MPs informed Liberal leader Brad Battin that he had lost the support of the party room and that it understood that Wilson would nominate for the leadership of the party in a spill the following morning.[14]
At the full Liberal party room meeting, members of the party's caucus voted 19 to 13 to allow the spill, after which Wilson was elected unopposed.[15] Wilson became the first woman to lead the Victorian Liberals.
Wilson is widely considered a moderate within the party, reflecting the politics of the blue-ribbon seat she represents.[17][18][19]
Personal life
Wilson grew up in Melbourne's inner east. Her father Ron was also a Liberal Party state MP, being the member for Bennettswood between 1999 and 2002.[20]
↑ Jaeger, Carla; Carmody, Broede (27 December 2024). "Brad Battin, having rolled Pesutto, promises unity and makes election pitch". The Age. Archived from the original on 27 December 2024. Retrieved 27 December 2024. Wilson, considered a moderate and rising star, finished third in the first-round ballot, leaving Battin and Crewther as the candidates in the final vote, which Battin won 21-7.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
