Legislative Council · Southern Metropolitan Region
Zofia Pawlaczek
Last verified 11 Oct 2026
Seat context — Southern Metropolitan Region›
Southern Metropolitan elects 5 MLCs and comprises 11 Legislative Assembly districts covering some of Melbourne's wealthiest inner-southeastern suburbs — Albert Park, Ashwood, Bentleigh, Brighton, Caulfield, Hawthorn, Kew, Malvern, Oakleigh, Prahran and Sandringham — with Oakleigh the only traditionally safe Labor seat among them. A bill abolishing group voting tickets for the Council has passed the Assembly and is before the Legislative Council's 11–13 August sitting.
Background
Describes herself, on the party's candidate profile, as a public strategy leader, policy advisor and former Associate Professor in Learning Futures, with experience leading large-scale workforce and organisational transformation. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View source
The profile does not name an employer, institution or dates for any of these roles. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View source
A 2013 conference paper lists Dr Zofia Pawlaczek at Deakin Learning Futures (Teaching Development), Deakin University. VVerified — ASCILITE13ASCILITE, "Higher Education Teachers' Understanding of Flexibility and Enhancement in a Learning Management System (Pawlaczek, Souter, Ting)" (30 Nov 2013)View source
A December 2017 post on a university Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor (Learning and Teaching) update blog is credited to Zosh Pawlaczek as Director, Program Quality and Development; the post does not itself name the university. VVerified — DPVC-BLOGDeputy Pro Vice-Chancellor, L&T Update, "Program Review Update" (11 Dec 2017)View source
Says she has designed and delivered major national capability initiatives, including workforce readiness frameworks for major national reforms. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View source
Says she directed clinical training and operational strategy during public health crisis responses. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View source
Describes herself as a health educator and an active proponent of evidence-based cannabis literacy. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View source
No elected office, council role or party office is listed on the party profile. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View source
The party profile and her campaign donation page say she first used cannabis products (over-the-counter CBD oil) while living in the UK; no dates are given. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEK, LC-HELPLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View sourceLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Help Zofia Pawlaczek Campaign in Southern Metropolitan (first-person donation page)"View source
Neither page states where in Southern Metropolitan, or in Victoria, she lives or has community ties. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEK, LC-HELPLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View sourceLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Help Zofia Pawlaczek Campaign in Southern Metropolitan (first-person donation page)"View source
Styled "Dr" in a 2013 conference paper and on the party profile; the field, institution and year of her doctorate are not stated in the sources reviewed. VVerified — ASCILITE13ASCILITE, "Higher Education Teachers' Understanding of Flexibility and Enhancement in a Learning Management System (Pawlaczek, Souter, Ting)" (30 Nov 2013)View source
The party profile cites expertise in systems design, regulatory implementation and capability development. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"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.
Standing because Victoria needs "sensible, evidence-based cannabis laws that put health, fairness and human wellbeing first."
Wants a future where people can access cannabis "without unnecessary stigma, criminalisation or barriers," with policy guided by evidence rather than outdated assumptions.
Advocates full whole-plant decriminalisation and evidence-based cannabis literacy.
Says she would represent Southern Metropolitan by advocating sensible law reform, health equity and economic innovation.
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
Supports full whole-plant decriminalisation and wants cannabis access without criminalisation; no specific bill or mechanism is described.
Party position (not hers specifically): thousands of people are needlessly funnelled into the criminal justice system each year by cannabis prohibition.
Party position: calls for a legal defence for medicinal cannabis patients charged with drug-driving presence offences when unimpaired.
Housing affordability and supply
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
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
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Health and healthcare access
Says CBD oil resolved her chronic pain and stiffness and settled sensory overload linked to Benign Fasciculation Syndrome, which led her to cannabis advocacy.
Argues the body's endocannabinoid system means whole-plant cannabis can range from harmless daily supplements to highly targeted medicines.
Cites millions of people living with unnecessary pain, disease and stigma; frames health equity as a goal. No hospital, GP or ambulance policy found.
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.
Group voting tickets were removed from Legislative Council elections by the Electoral Amendment (Miscellaneous Matters) Act 2026, passed 11 August 2026; voters must number at least 5 boxes above or below the line. VVerified — VEC-AMEND26Victorian Electoral Commission, "2026 Electoral Act amendments"View source
At the 2022 election Legalise Cannabis polled 2.91% in Southern Metropolitan, led by Marc Selan, and won no seat there. Its two sitting MLCs represent other regions. VVerified — WIKI-SMRWikipedia, "Electoral results for the Southern Metropolitan Region"View source
No Southern Metropolitan local issue is stated on her party profile or donation page. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEK, LC-HELPLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View sourceLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Help Zofia Pawlaczek Campaign in Southern Metropolitan (first-person donation page)"View source
Her stated priorities (cannabis law reform, patient and health framing) match the party's central plank. Party site lists three campaign themes: legalise cannabis, let patients drive, grow the hemp industry. SSelf-stated — LC-ABOUT, LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "About / What matters to us"View sourceLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View source
The party's Ettershank moved the second reading of the Cannabis Legalisation Plebiscite Bill 2026 on 29 July 2026; debate was adjourned. VVerified — HANSARD-PLEBParliament of Victoria, "Hansard, Cannabis Legalisation Plebiscite Bill 2026, 29 July 2026" (29 July 2026)View source
It would hold a non-binding statewide plebiscite on a 2023 model of small-quantity possession, up to six home-grown plants and gifting, without a legal market. VVerified — HANSARD-PLEBParliament of Victoria, "Hansard, Cannabis Legalisation Plebiscite Bill 2026, 29 July 2026" (29 July 2026)View source
She calls for full whole-plant decriminalisation and has not been found commenting on a commercial market or the plebiscite, so any gap with the party model is unknown. SSelf-stated — LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View source
No candidate or party position was found on cost of living, housing, debt, infrastructure, education, planning, climate, Treaty or regional issues. SSelf-stated — LC-ABOUT, LC-PAWLACZEKLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "About / What matters to us"View sourceLegalise Cannabis Victoria, "Zofia Pawlaczek - Candidate for Southern Metropolitan"View source
Track record & prior candidacies
Co-authored a 2013 ASCILITE conference paper (with Kay Souter and Aleisha Ting, Deakin) on higher education teachers' understanding of flexibility and enhancement in a learning management system. VVerified — ASCILITE13ASCILITE, "Higher Education Teachers' Understanding of Flexibility and Enhancement in a Learning Management System (Pawlaczek, Souter, Ting)" (30 Nov 2013)View source
Co-authored a 2015 ASCILITE discussion paper with Garry Allan on third-party technology, student learning data and governance of enterprise learning system design. VVerified — ASCILITE15ASCILITE, "Decisions and designs for building enterprise learning systems within an enabled learning paradigm (Allan, Pawlaczek)" (27 Nov 2015)View source
Campaign, money & endorsements
Campaign logistics
Endorsements & Donations
Per the VEC's public funding page for registered parties (accessed 2026-10-11), funding is paid to the party, not to individual candidates. A party is eligible if it endorsed candidates and at least one received at least 4% of first-preference votes or was elected.
The amount depends on the party's audited statement of expenditure, the votes its candidates received and legislated maximums. The VEC's 2026-27 indexation table sets $3.84 per first-preference vote for upper house candidates. The VEC notes the page is under review after the Electoral Further Amendment Act 2026.