Legislative Assembly · District of South-West Coast
Roma Britnell
Last verified 30 Sept 2026
Seat context — South-West Coast›
South-West Coast covers about 6,576 km² of south-western Victoria in the Barwon South West region, centred on Warrnambool and taking in Portland, Port Fairy, Koroit, Heywood and Macarthur. Created in 2002 to replace the former Portland and Warrnambool seats, it is, per Wikipedia, 'ancestrally Liberal territory' and has been held by the Liberal Party continuously since Denis Napthine's narrow 0.7%-margin win amid Labor's 2002 landslide. Roma Britnell (Liberal) has held the seat since winning a 2015 by-election triggered by Napthine's resignation, and retained it comfortably at the 2022 election with 58.0% of the two-candidate-preferred vote to Labor's 42.0% (a 16-point margin, a swing of +4.8 points on 2018). The 2026 field found is five candidates: Britnell, Labor's Andrew Govanstone, the Greens' Silver Rose, the Victorian Socialists' Hera Sheppard and One Nation's Richard Hughes. In 2022 independent Carol Altmann polled 14.4%, but no independent has been found for 2026. Wikipedia's 2026 candidates table lists Sheppard as Animal Justice, which the party's own page contradicts.
Background
Is a former registered nurse with over 30 years of experience, including 15 years managing the Kirrae Health Service in the Framlingham Aboriginal Community. VVerified — PARL-BRITNELLParliament of Victoria, "Roma Britnell MP"View source
Also operated a dairy farm business and sat on agriculture sector boards. VVerified — PARL-BRITNELLParliament of Victoria, "Roma Britnell MP"View source
Her electorate office is at 94 Liebig Street, Warrnambool. VVerified — PARL-BRITNELLParliament of Victoria, "Roma Britnell MP"View source
Attended St Ann's College in Warrnambool and trained as a nurse at Warrnambool Base Hospital. RReported — WP-BRITNELLWikipedia, "Roma Britnell"View source
Platform
Where they stand, issue by issue — grounded in 2026 Victorian polling, not assumed. Every position is tagged with how we know it.
Agriculture, regional development, public and community health, freight and transport infrastructure, roads and road safety, and adequate funding for her region.
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
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
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.
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.
State government debt and fiscal management
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Names freight and transport infrastructure, roads and road safety as key focus areas.
Wikipedia records a shadow role for Rural Roads and for Ports and Freight from 2018.
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
Names public and community health as a focus area, drawing on 30 years as a nurse.
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
Names agriculture and regional development as focus areas and envisions "Victoria's future as a decentralised state with investment in regional centres".
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.
Her stated interests fit the Liberals' regional priorities; no divergence was found.
Wikipedia's 2026 candidates table lists her as the Liberal candidate. 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.
As the sitting member, Britnell met the "elected" limb of the test in 2022, and her 42.9% first-preference vote was also well above 4%.