Legislative Assembly · District of Bellarine
Ronan Keogh
Last verified 30 Sept 2026
Seat context — Bellarine›
The Legislative Assembly district of Bellarine stretches from the Bellarine Peninsula to the outer eastern suburbs of Geelong, covering Barwon Heads, Clifton Springs, Drysdale, Ocean Grove, Point Lonsdale, Portarlington, Queenscliff and the Geelong suburb of Leopold. It has traditionally been a marginal seat that has changed hands between Labor and Liberal since being recreated in 1985. Labor's Alison Marchant won the seat at the 2022 election, defeating the Liberal candidate on a two-candidate-preferred vote of 58.46% to 41.54% — a margin of roughly 17 points.
Background
Platform
Where they stand, issue by issue — grounded in 2026 Victorian polling, not assumed. Every position is tagged with how we know it.
De-privatising and de-commodifying public services, ending public funding flowing to private interests, a well-funded public transport system, more publicly owned land for environmental protection, better Bellarine bus routes, extending V/Line onto the peninsula and a public works program.
"I believe in a future built by workers, not bosses. In parliament, that's what I'd fight for every day."
What Victorians say matters most
5 poll-led issuesCost of living and crime have ranked 1st or 2nd in every Victorian poll since mid‑2025, with debt and housing close behind — see schema §3 for the polling this grouping is based on (DemosAU, Ipsos Issues Monitor, Roy Morgan). The 0-10 'priorityScore' on each candidate's issue entries is NOT a measure of true importance or an independent ranking of what a candidate actually cares about. It reflects how much detail and specificity exists in what that candidate has actually said publicly on that issue -- a named policy mechanism and a verified voting record score higher than a one-line stated priority, regardless of the issue's real-world weight. Render this distinction in the UI wherever the score appears; do not label it just 'Priority' without the qualifier.
Cost of living
The party's fiscal policy would fund services with a 10% annual wealth tax on billionaires and a 20% bank profits tax; nothing on cost of living is attributed to Ronan Keogh personally.
Crime and community safety
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Housing affordability and supply
The party's housing policy would cut all residential rents 25% then freeze them for five years, and build at least 15,000 public housing units a year for ten years; nothing on housing is attributed to Ronan Keogh personally.
State government debt and fiscal management
Wants public funding stopped from flowing to private sector interests.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Wants a robust, well-funded public transport system, better bus routes across the Bellarine and a V/Line extension onto the peninsula.
A summary of the party's transport policy says it would make public transport free.
Also on the record
6 substance issuesThese don't top “biggest issue” polling, but carry real 2026 policy weight and genuine differences between parties.
Education and training
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Health and healthcare access
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Urban planning and housing density
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Climate and energy transition
Wants publicly owned land expanded for environmental protection and opposes privatisation of energy.
A summary of the party's energy policies says it would move to 100% publicly owned renewable energy.
Treaty and First Nations affairs
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Regional and rural Victoria
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Local & party context
2 fieldsNot scored the way the eleven issues above are — these are fixed facts about the seat and the party, not positions with more or less emphasis behind them.
Their priorities match the Victorian Socialists' statewide platform. SSelf-stated — VS-RK, VS-POLICIESVictorian Socialists, "Ronan Keogh"View sourceVictorian Socialists, "Policies"View source
Wikipedia's 2026 candidates table lists them as the Victorian Socialists' candidate for this seat. RReported — WIKI-2026CANDSWikipedia, "Candidates of the 2026 Victorian state election"View source
Track record & prior candidacies
Campaign, money & endorsements
Campaign logistics
Endorsements & Donations
Per the Victorian Electoral Commission's funding guidance (vec.vic.gov.au, accessed 2026-09-29 via search snippets of its independent-candidate and registered-party funding pages), a candidate is eligible for public election funding if they receive at least 4% of first-preference votes in their contest, or are elected. Funding is reimbursed against an audited statement of campaign expenditure, and advance funding must be repaid in full if the threshold is missed.
Ronan Keogh has not previously contested an election on the profile's account, and the Victorian Socialists' earlier results in this seat were not retrieved.