The Liberals have chosen a 44-year-old former German army officer to go into battle in the seat of Newcastle at the NSW election but are yet to name their other Hunter candidates.
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Thomas Triebsees, a senior executive with Service NSW with a PhD in computer science, will take on Labor incumbent Tim Crakanthorp in the March 25 poll.
Mr Triebsees lives at Mayfield with wife Katrin. Their five-year-old daughter, Katarina, started kindergarten on Monday, the same day the Liberals announced his candidature.
He said he was a committed liberal who had grown up in the former East Germany and seen the benefits of free-market thinking during the country's reunification.
"I grew up in a small town in a working-class family, later moved on to serve in the German army as a commissioned officer and then 15 years ago came to Australia," he said. "I came here for six months to study and stayed because I loved it."
He said he had learned the value of hard work, family and community.
"But, having lived through the German reunification process as well, the values of individual freedom, reward for effort, were very much ingrained in me from a very young age.
"I would call myself a liberal, according to my value set, but I also come from a working-class family and a strong family-oriented environment."
Mr Triebsees said he had been involved heavily in the pandemic, bushfire and flood responses while working in senior government roles.
"It humbled me to be part of that, to be able to serve in the community in that way, because you could see families, households, businesses at the worst moments in their lives."
He was chosen unopposed as the Newcastle Liberal branch's candidate.
His first official appearance was alongside Deputy Premier Paul Toole at media events at Stockton beach and Newcastle port on Monday.
The Nationals announced last weekend that business student Ash Barnham would contest the seat of Cessnock against Labor's Clayton Barr, but the Liberals have not yet named candidates in Port Stephens, Maitland, Charlestown, Lake Macquarie, Swansea or Wallsend.
Mr Triebsees has emerged as the candidate for a Newcastle branch riven with infighting in recent years.
Newcastle councillor Jenny Barrie resigned as branch vice-president in December while accusing party members of "bullying" female members.
Mr Triebsees faces a monumental challenge trying to unseat Mr Crakanthorp, who increased his 7.4-point margin to 17.7 points at the 2019 election.
Michael Parris
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
