Legislative Assembly · District of Warrandyte
Nicole Werner
Last verified 30 Sept 2026
Seat context — Warrandyte›
Warrandyte is a Liberal seat in Melbourne's outer east, covering Warrandyte, North Warrandyte, Warrandyte South, Warranwood, Wonga Park, Parkwood and parts of Donvale and Doncaster East. Ryan Smith held it for 16 years and won it in 2022 with 47.3% of first preferences and 54.3% two-party-preferred against Labor. Nicole Werner won the seat at the 26 August 2023 by-election after his resignation, with 57.3% of first preferences and 71.0% against the Greens' Tomas Lightbody in the two-candidate count, and is recontesting. Local issues include the Suburban Rail Loop and densification around Doncaster, the Five Ways intersection and the Green Wedge. The 2026 field found is three candidates: Werner, One Nation's Mark Burnside and the Victorian Socialists' John Stanley. No Labor or Greens candidate has been found, and Wikipedia's 2026 table leaves Burnside and Stanley without party labels.
Background
Has worked in the charity and not-for-profit sectors, including as a youth worker and with homeless people and refugee communities. VVerified — PARL-WERNERParliament of Victoria, "Nicole Werner — Member profile"View source
A business development manager for the food-relief charity Empower Australia, per earlier Pass 1 research. RReported — ABC-WERNERPRESELECTIONABC News, "Warrandyte by-election Liberal candidate preselection"View source
Was born in Box Hill and attended a language school in Doncaster East after starting school without English; her parents migrated from Malaysia in the 1980s. RReported — WIKI-WERNERWikipedia, "Nicole Werner"View source
Her electorate office is at 1020 Doncaster Road, Doncaster East. VVerified — PARL-WERNERParliament of Victoria, "Nicole Werner — Member profile"View source
Says she lives with her husband on the same street she grew up on, and is involved in local footy. SSelf-stated — LIBV-NICOLE-WERNERLiberal Victoria, "Nicole Werner — Liberal candidate profile" (22 May 2024)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.
Fixing the dangerous Five Ways intersection, addressing rising cost of living, retaining community consultation in planning decisions and protecting the Green Wedge.
Names the Five Ways intersection, cost of living, community consultation in planning, and protecting the Green Wedge as priorities.
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
Names addressing rising cost of living as a priority.
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
Holds the shadow portfolio for Home Ownership and Housing Affordability.
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 fixing the dangerous Five Ways intersection as a priority.
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
Names retaining community consultation in planning decisions and protecting the Green Wedge as priorities.
Climate and energy transition
Names protecting the Green Wedge as a priority, which is the only environmental item on her profile.
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.
The Five Ways intersection and the Green Wedge. SSelf-stated — PARL-WERNERParliament of Victoria, "Nicole Werner — Member profile"View source
The Tally Room lists the Suburban Rail Loop and densification in central Doncaster as live local issues; neither is attributed to her. RReported — TALLYROOM-WARRANDYTEThe Tally Room, "Warrandyte 2026"View source
Track record & prior candidacies
Contested Box Hill for the Liberals in 2022, losing to incumbent Paul Hamer. RReported — WIKI-WERNERWikipedia, "Nicole Werner"View source
Won the 2023 Warrandyte by-election with 21,921 votes (57.3%) and 71.0% against the Greens' Tomas Lightbody in the two-candidate count. VVerified — WIKI-WAR-RESWikipedia, "Electoral results for the district of Warrandyte"View source
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, Werner met the "elected" limb of the test at the 2023 by-election, where her 57.3% of first preferences was also well above 4%.