Young queer activist Sam McColl has been announced as the Greens' candidate for Mallee in the 2022 federal election.
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He joins Independents Sophie Baldwin, Claudia Haenel, United Australia Party candidate Stuart King and Citizens Party candidate Chris Lahy in contesting the seat against incumbent Nationals member Anne Webster.
Mr McColl grew up in Ararat, and left the region at 18 to study an advanced diploma in Live Production.
Upon his return to the region, Mr McColl has become a community activist, volunteer and Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance union member.
He has a history of volunteering with St Johns Ambulance and Ambulance Victoria, an experience which he said gave him important insight into the efforts of frontline workers.
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"I have done surge work with Ambulance Victoria which has helped me see how incredible healthcare workers are," he said.
"When you are on the front lines with them you get to see some amazing moments.
"I have been able to meet some awesome people in my local community, become an activist, fight for amazing things and be an ally for different communities."
Mr McColl said his priorities were addressing economic inequality in the country, improving access to healthcare for the Mallee, taking action on climate change and expanding Australia's available public housing.
"We're already seeing the effects of climate change in Mallee, as well as witnessing the devastating, record-breaking floods in northern NSW, on top of the Black Saturday bushfires," he said.
"This is climate change. It's here right now, yet Labor and Liberal still support 114 new coal and gas projects.
"Only the Greens want an end to new coal and gas projects and to turn Australia into a renewable energy exporter and the hundreds of thousands of sustainable jobs that go with it, including in the Mallee community."
Mr McColl acknowledged that Mallee has historically been a safe seat for the National Party, something he believed made the major parties neglect the region.
"Having a safe seat is not always a great thing, because the Nationals know they will win the vote. There is not really much spent in the region," he said.
"The government hands out money to swing seats. If voters vote in a different way I think we will see a better result for our region."
The 2022 federal election will be held on Saturday, March 21.
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