Keith Wolahan

Last updated

Keith Wolahan
Keith Wolahan.png
Wolahan in 2023
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Menzies
In office
21 May 2022 –3 May 2025
Years of service1996–2014
Rank Captain
Commands 1st Commando Regiment
Battles/wars
Awards Commendation for Distinguished Service

Keith Wolahan (born 30 September 1977) [1] is a former Australian politician and member of the Victorian Bar. He represented the seat of Menzies in the House of Representatives for the Liberal Party from 2022 to 2025. [2] [3] Prior to entering politics, he was an Australian Army officer, serving three tours of Afghanistan as a commando officer, and also practised as a commercial barrister for twelve years. [4] [5]

Contents

Early life

Family background

Wolahan was born in Dublin, Ireland, [1] migrating to Australia with his parents and two brothers in 1988. [6] He was educated at Ringwood Secondary College. [4]

Wolahan studied at the University of Melbourne where he graduated with Bachelor's degrees in Arts (Politics) and Commerce (Economics). [6] [1] He continued studying at Monash University, completing a Bachelor of Law (Honours). [1] He was awarded the Sir Charles Lowe Moot Prize. [7]

Wolahan began his career in law with the national firm, Mallesons Stephen Jacques where he specialised in mergers and acquisitions. [8] [5] In 2010 he became a barrister, [1] specialising in commercial and consumer trials. [9]

In 2013, Wolahan graduated from University of Cambridge with a master's degree in International Relations. [6] [1]

Military service

Wolahan joined the military while at University, eventually joining 2 Commando Company, 1st Commando Regiment. [10] Wolahan was promoted to Captain in 2004 and saw several periods of active service, including four postings overseas with 2 Commando: [8] [11]

Wolahan lost two friends in the War in Afghanistan: Marcus Case and Greg Sher. [4] [14] He joined two other Afghanistan veterans in the 47th Parliament of Australia: Andrew Hastie and Phillip Thompson. [14]

Political career

Preselection

Wolahan defeated the sitting member Kevin Andrews in a preselection contest, 181 votes to 111. [15] [16] Andrews entered the contest with written endorsements from then Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, and Prime Minister Scott Morrison. [17] [18] It was the first time a sitting Victorian Liberal MP had been ousted by their members in more than 20 years. [17]

2022 election

The 2022 federal election saw a 6% swing against the Liberals in Menzies. [2] One of the contributing factors was a large swing in suburbs with higher proportions of Chinese ancestry, including Box Hill and Doncaster. [2]

47th Parliament

Wolahan was a member of the House Economics and Joint Standing National Anti-Corruption Commission Committees. [19] He also served as the Deputy Chair of The Joint Select Committee on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice Referendum. [20]

2025 election

Following a redistribution that shifted Menzies’ margin from a 50.7% Liberal seat to a notionally 50.4% Labor seat, the 2025 federal election delivered a -0.62% two-party preferred swing to Labor in Menzies, resulting in Labor gaining the seat with just over 51% of the two-party preferred vote. [3] He was defeated by Gabriel Ng of the Labor Party. [3]

Post-politics

Just weeks after his 2025 defeat, media reported that Wolahan had been successfully re-admitted to practice at the Victorian Bar. [21]

Personal life

Wolahan is married to Sarah and they have two children, Leo and Eva. He and Sarah were married at Heide Museum of Modern Art in Bulleen. [22]

Honours and awards

Commendation for Distinguished Service (Aust) ribbon.png Australian Active Service Medal ribbon.png Afghanistan Medal (Australia) ribbon.png Australian Service Medal ribbon.png Australian Defence Medal (Australia) ribbon.png NATO Medal ISAF ribbon bar v2.svg AUS Meritorious Unit Citation with Federation Star.png TLSM.jpeg

Commendation for Distinguished Service (Aust) ribbon.png Commendation for Distinguished Service Awarded in 2011 Australia Day Honours for service in Afghanistan. [17]
Australian Active Service Medal ribbon.png Australian Active Service Medal With clasp for East Timor
Afghanistan Medal (Australia) ribbon.png Afghanistan Medal Operation SLIPPER
Australian Service Medal ribbon.png Australian Service Medal With clasp for CT/SR (Counter Terrorism / Special Recovery)
Australian Defence Medal (Australia) ribbon.png Australian Defence Medal
NATO Medal ISAF ribbon bar v2.svg NATO Medal for the Non-Article 5 ISAF Operation in Afghanistan With clasp ISAF
AUS Meritorious Unit Citation with Federation Star.png Meritorious Unit Citation with Federation Star Awarded to Task Force 66 in the 2015 Australia Day Honours
Infantry Combat Badge
TLSM.jpeg Timor Leste Solidarity Medal (East Timor)

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Mr Keith Wolahan MP". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 24 February 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 "AEC Tallyroom". Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 28 May 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 "AEC Tallyroom". Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 Harris, Benjamin Preiss, Rob (14 March 2020). "Battle for Liberal hearts and minds in Menzies". The Age. Retrieved 12 October 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. 1 2 Tongol, Robyn (8 April 2022). "Meet the barrister standing for the Liberals in Menzies". www.lawyersweekly.com.au. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 "Meet Keith". www.keithwolahan.com.au. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  7. ↑ "2002 Prize Winners". Faculty of Law. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  8. 1 2 "Menzies - Federal Electorate, Candidates, Results". abc.net.au. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  9. ↑ "Keith Wolahan". Liberal Party of Australia. 18 July 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  10. ↑ Napier-Raman, Noel Towell, Kishor (12 September 2022). "Queen's man Abbott in a league on his own". The Age. Retrieved 12 October 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. 1 2 3 "Life on the Line: #109 Keith Wolahan on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  12. ↑ "Liberals' new star was shaped by an endless war". Australian Financial Review. 5 February 2021. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  13. ↑ "Liberal MP urges truth on Afghanistan war". canberratimes.com.au. The Canberra Times. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  14. 1 2 Crowe, David (5 September 2022). "The dress that spoke louder than words". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  15. ↑ Ilanbey, Paul Sakkal, Sumeyya (31 January 2021). "Kevin Andrews toppled in preselection battle for Menzies". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 12 October 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. ↑ Sakkal, Paul (5 February 2021). "How an ex-special forces captain beat 'the hacks' to win the battle for Menzies". The Age. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  17. 1 2 3 "Keith Wolahan, the ex-commando who unseated Liberal Party stalwart Kevin Andrews, insists he's 'not a moderate'". ABC News. 1 February 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  18. ↑ Ferguson, Richard (1 February 2021). "Liberal stalwart Kevin Andrews loses Menzies preselection to Keith Wolahan". The Australian. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  19. ↑ "Mr Keith Wolahan MP". Parliament of Australia. Canberra: Parliament of Australia. 24 March 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  20. ↑ "Committee Membership – Joint Select Committee on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice Referendum". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
  21. ↑ https://www.theage.com.au/national/14-coalition-mps-lost-their-seats-at-the-election-one-already-has-a-new-job-20250526-p5m2bv.html
  22. ↑ Wolahan, Keith, Member for Menzies (5 September 2022). "Governor-General's Speech - Address-in-Reply". Parliamentary Debates. Parliament of Australia: House of Representatives.
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by Member for Menzies
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