After months of hesitation, Sydney MP Nickolas Varvaris has announced his intention to run again for the inner-western seat of Barton on 2 July.
But the media-shy Liberal will be up against it. In 2013 Mr Varvaris won the seat narrowly. This time around, with the redistribution of the electorate by the electoral commission, he faces a stiffer challenge.
The MP was reported to be devastated by the redistribution, which turns the seat held by the Liberal party by less than one point, to one notionally held by Labor by more than four per cent.
Last year Mr Varvaris’ parents made an impassioned plea to the electoral commission to keep the Barton electorate unchanged.
Liberals have reportedly interpreted Mr Varvaris’ late confirmation to run as a show of anger towards the party hierarchy over the redistribution as well as the state government’s amalgamation policy.
“He doesn’t feel like they’ve done much for him,” one Liberal colleague told Fairfax Media.
Adding to Mr Varavaris’ woes is the high-profile of Labor’s candidate Linda Burney, who, if elected, would become the first Indigenous woman to become a member of the House of Representatives.
Mr Varvaris, who was seen as a fervent supporter of Tony Abbott in the Liberal leadership battle, has been described as a “low-profile MP” since winning the Barton seat for the Liberals for the first time.
A former accountant, he has also held the mayorship of Kogarah Council.