Legislative Assembly · District of Mulgrave
Charles Tran
Last verified 30 Sept 2026
Seat context — Mulgrave›
Mulgrave, formerly held by Premier Daniel Andrews (51.0% of first preferences and 60.8% two-party-preferred in 2022), has been held by Labor's Eden Foster since she won the 18 November 2023 by-election with 40.18% of first preferences and 56.49% to 43.51% two-candidate-preferred against independent Ian Cook. Foster, the seat's first female representative, is recontesting. The 2026 field is four candidates: Foster, the Liberals' Charles Tran, the Greens' Paul Schofield and the Victorian Socialists' Connor Buchanan. The Tally Room says Labor's hold is likely solid.
Background
Platform
Where they stand, issue by issue — grounded in 2026 Victorian polling, not assumed. Every position is tagged with how we know it.
Lower costs, better health services, and safer streets, buses and train services, backing 3,000 more police and 200 more PSOs.
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
Wants lower costs.
Crime and community safety
The Coalition's bail and sentencing policy, per the ABC, would automatically deny bail to reoffenders under a one-strike rule; nothing is attributed to Tran personally.
Backs 3,000 more police and 200 more PSOs for safer streets, buses and trains.
Housing affordability and supply
The Coalition would lift the first-home buyer threshold to remove stamp duty on homes up to $1 million, per a housing-policy comparison; nothing is attributed to Tran personally.
State government debt and fiscal management
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
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
Wants high-quality education for every family, drawing on 18 years as a teacher.
Health and healthcare access
Wants better health services and high-quality healthcare for every family.
Urban planning and housing density
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Climate and energy transition
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
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.
Track record & prior candidacies
He is not among the candidates in the 2022 election or 2023 by-election results; the Liberals' candidates were Michael Piastrino (17.2%) in 2022 and Courtney Mann (21.69%) at the by-election. VVerified — WIKI-MUL-RESWikipedia, "Electoral results for the district of Mulgrave"View source
No earlier election candidacy was found.
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.
Tran has not previously contested an election. The Liberals' 2022 Mulgrave candidate polled 17.2%.