Legislative Assembly · District of Williamstown
Melissa Horne
Last verified 29 Sept 2026
Seat context — Williamstown›
Williamstown is a Labor seat in Melbourne's inner west held by senior minister Melissa Horne since 2018. At the 2022 election she won 41.5% of first preferences and 63.4% two-party-preferred against the Liberals' Daria Kellander. She is recontesting in a seven-candidate field: the Liberals' Paul Lindemann, the Greens' Ben Hocking, independent Tony Briffa (a former Hobsons Bay mayor), the West Party's Gill Gannon, One Nation's Catherine Loughnan and the Victorian Socialists' Oskar Martin. The Tally Room rates Labor's margin as large, though commentary there suggests Briffa could poll strongly.
Background
Worked at senior levels of government and the corporate sector, with extensive communications and stakeholder-relations experience in the transport sector. VVerified — PARL-HORNEParliament of Victoria, "Melissa Horne — Member profile"View source
Wikipedia says she was communications director of the Level Crossing Removal Authority. RReported — WIKI-HORNEWikipedia, "Melissa Horne"View source
Her electorate office is at 101 Douglas Parade, Williamstown; her parents were schoolteachers. VVerified — PARL-HORNEParliament of Victoria, "Melissa Horne — Member profile"View source
Is the daughter of former federal MP Bob Horne and has two children. RReported — WIKI-HORNEWikipedia, "Melissa Horne"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.
Her profile emphasises transport communications experience and the community campaign for a new inner-west public high school.
Holds the Ports and Freight and Jobs portfolios.
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
Labor's 2026 platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, includes a vehicle registration rebate of up to $186, half-price public transport fares from June to December 2026 and free midday electricity from October 2026; nothing is attributed to Horne personally.
Crime and community safety
Was briefly Minister for Prevention of Family Violence in 2026 and Minister for Casino, Gaming and Liquor Regulation from 2022 to 2024.
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, includes the 2025 bail law changes.
Housing affordability and supply
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, is built around the Big Housing Build; nothing is attributed to Horne personally.
State government debt and fiscal management
Is Minister for Jobs and for Industry and Advanced Manufacturing.
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, projects operating surpluses of $700 million in 2025-26 and $1 billion in 2026-27.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Is Minister for Ports and Freight, a portfolio she has held since November 2018, and was Minister for Roads and Road Safety until April 2026.
Was Minister for Health Infrastructure from December 2024 to August 2026.
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
Led the campaign for a new public high school in the inner west.
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, includes $5.5 billion of new education investment in 2026-27 and the Free TAFE guarantee.
Health and healthcare access
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, includes $3.9 billion of new health investment in 2026-27; nothing is attributed to Horne personally.
Urban planning and housing density
Was Minister for Local Government and Suburban Development from June 2022 to December 2024.
Climate and energy transition
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, targets 65% renewables by 2030 and 95% by 2035; nothing is attributed to Horne personally.
Treaty and First Nations affairs
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, cites implementation of the Statewide Treaty Act 2025; nothing is attributed to Horne personally.
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
Current: Ports and Freight, Jobs, Industry and Advanced Manufacturing, and Defence Industry. VVerified — PARL-HORNE, WIKI-HORNEParliament of Victoria, "Melissa Horne — Member profile"View sourceWikipedia, "Melissa Horne"View source
Earlier: Public Transport (2018-2020), Fishing and Boating (2020-2022), Casino, Gaming and Liquor Regulation and Local Government and Suburban Development (2022-2024), Roads and Road Safety (December 2022-April 2026), Health Infrastructure (December 2024-August 2026), Prevention of Family Violence (April-August 2026). RReported — WIKI-HORNEWikipedia, "Melissa Horne"View source
Won Williamstown in 2018 with 50.36% of first preferences and 72.07% two-party-preferred against the Liberals' Pallavee Joshi. VVerified — WIKI-WILLIAMSTOWN-RESWikipedia, "Electoral results for the district of Williamstown"View source
Won again in 2022 with 41.5% of first preferences and 63.4% two-party-preferred against the Liberals' Daria Kellander. VVerified — WIKI-WILLIAMSTOWN-RESWikipedia, "Electoral results for the district of Williamstown"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, Horne met the "elected" limb of the test at the 2022 election, so her Williamstown campaign qualified for public funding.