By Mark Hawthorne
Former human rights commissioner Tim Wilson has gambled his $400,000 a year job to punt on a career in Canberra, and won pre-selection in the safe Liberal seat of Goldstein.
Mr Wilson beat Georgina Downer, the daughter of former foreign minister Alexander Downer, and local favourite, Denis Dragovic, during pre-selection in Melbourne on Saturday afternoon.
Tim Wilson has won the safe Liberal seat of Goldstein.Credit: Justin McManus
Ms Downer was eliminated after the first round of voting, leaving Mr Wilson and Mr Dragovic.
Mr Wilson won a close head-to-head vote by just two votes.
Georgina Downer, daughter of Alexander Downer, was eliminated after the first round of voting.Credit: Twitter
"I have never been so humbled in my life," Mr Wilson said after winning the candidacy. "To carry the trust, and to represent the values of the people of Goldstein, is very humbling."
Goldstein is one of the jewels in the Victorian crown for the Liberal Party, centred around the city's well-heeled Bayside suburbs of Brighton and Sandringham.
Goldstein has been held by the Liberals since it was founded in 1984, and all three of its past members - Ian Macphee, David Kemp and outgoing trade minister Andrew Robb - have been cabinet ministers.
Mr Wilson faced a tough fight to win the seat. An openly gay candidate, Mr Wilson launched the controversial Safe Schools Coalition during his time as human rights commissioner, an anti-bullying campaign designed to raise support for and reducing prejudice against LGBTI students.
The program was rolled out to more than 500 schools across the country, but faced staunch criticism from conservative backbenchers, including Cory Bernardi and George Christensen. The program was ultimately gutted on Friday, just hours before the Goldstein preselection vote took place.
In the days leading up to the vote, a four-page scandal sheet was posted to party members in the seat.
Senior Liberals described the sheet as "grubby and homophobic", and launched an investigation into its origins.
Mr Wilson was described in the pamphlet as "neither conservative or liberal", a "proud supporter of the Safe Schools Coalition" and was criticised for his "unrelenting campaign for gay rights issues".
The pamphlet also attacked Mr Wilson's education and political experience. But the scandal sheet coalesced support behind Mr Wilson.
Education minister Simon Birmingham, his predecessor in the job, Christopher Pyne, and assistant education minister Scott Ryan all jumped to his defence. They all stated that Mr Wilson had voiced concerns about some of the more controversial aspects of the program.
"In the end, what this incident proves is that substance and policy and steering the future direction the country is more important to Liberal Party values, not smears," Mr Wilson said after his victory.
Amid the furore, Liberal Party state president Michael Kroger downplayed the campaign against Mr Wilson in a television interview. "Tim Wilson is an outstanding Australian, everyone knows that," Mr Kroger told Sky News.
"These sheets go around Liberal preselections and Labor preselections. They do no real harm because our members, like the Labor members, are used to this stuff and they take very little notice of it."
It is believed Mr Kroger encouraged Mr Wilson to run for Goldstein, instead of a contest a spot on the state's senate ticket.
Mr Kroger praised Mr Wilson's victory on Saturday evening. "He is an outstanding and highly qualified and decorated advocate of Liberal values," he said