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Marielle Smith
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| Senator for South Australia | |
| Assumed office 1 July 2019 (2019-07-01) | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Marielle Catherine Smith (1986-12-30) 30 December 1986 (age 37) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
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| Political party | ALP |
| Alma mater | Australian National University London School of Economics |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Website | www |
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Marielle Catherine Smith (born 30 December 1986), also known as Marielle Feuerherdt Smith, is an Australian politician. She is a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and has served as a Senator for South Australia since 2019.
Marielle Catherine Smith,[1] also referred to as Marielle Feuerherdt Smith,[2][3] was born on 30 December 1986 in Sydney.[4] Her mother was born in the United Kingdom and she held British citizenship by descent until renouncing it in 2018 prior to running for parliament.[2]
Smith attended University Senior CollegeinAdelaide, South Australia.[5][6] She holds the degrees of Bachelor of Arts from the Australian National University and Master of Science from the London School of Economics.[4]
After graduating from ANU she joined the Australian Public Service through the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet's graduate program.[5]
Smith has undertaken volunteer work with non-government organisations in Ghana and Sierra Leone.[5] She is a former board member of Transit Systems, a bus company co-founded by her father Neil.[7][8] She can drive articulated buses.[9]
Smith joined the Australian Labor Party (ALP) at a young age. She worked for Labor MP Kate Ellis as a researcher (2005–2008) and ministerial adviser (2010–2012), and later as a senior policy adviser to Prime Minister Julia Gillard. She regards both Ellis and Gillard as mentors.[10]
In 2017, Smith was elected to the ALP state executive and state council. She also served as a delegate to the Australian Labor Party National Conference.[4] In 2018, she was a preselection candidate for the Division of Adelaide.[11]
Smith was elected to the Senate at the 2019 federal election. She is a member of several Senate committees.[4] She has been identified as a member of the Labor Right faction.[11]
In her maiden speech to the Senate, Smith called for Labor to retain its 2019 election policy of funding preschool for three-year-olds "to ensure all children can access world-leading early education and care, regardless of what their parents do, how much they earn or where they live."[12]
Smith is married with two children and three step-children.[13] Her husband Clint Feuerherdt is the managing director of SeaLink Travel Group and former CEO of Transit Systems.[14][15]
Marielle Smith, a one-time adviser to Ms Ellis and a current adviser to former Prime Minister Julia Gillard has confirmed to the ABC she intends to nominate for the seat when preselection opens.
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Current members of the Australian Senate
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| Coalition (31) |
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| Labor (26) |
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| Greens (11) |
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| One Nation (2) |
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| Lambie (1) |
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| United Australia (1) |
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| Independent (4) |
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*The Liberal and National totals include members of the Liberal National Party of Queensland and the Country Liberal Party (NT) who caucus with either the federal Liberals or Nationals. | |||||
| International |
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| National |
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| People |
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