senator Hollie Hughes Contact information

Hollie Hughes was elected to the Senate for New South Wales in 2019 following a successful career in communications, government affairs, consultancy and advocacy for rural and regional Australians.

Now based in Sydney, Senator Hughes spent almost 20 years living in the country – mainly at Moree in north western NSW.

As a mother of three she had a first-hand understanding of the drought’s devastating impacts on rural families and local economies against a backdrop of limited social and health services.

In recent years Senator Hughes has also been a passionate advocate for autistic children and their families after her son was diagnosed in 2012.

In November 2019 she was appointed as chair of the Senate Select Committee on Autism, to inquire into and report on the services, support and life outcomes for autistic people. She is leading the inquiry after her experience as Founder and Chair of the Country Autism Network equipped her with the determination to make a difference for battling families in regional communities across our nation.

In October 2020, Hollie was appointed chair of the Senate Select Committee on Tobacco Harm Reduction. She also sits on the Committees for Community Affairs, Public Works, and National Disability Insurance Scheme.

After graduating in Broadcast Journalism at Charles Sturt University Senator Hughes completed a Masters of Politics and Public Policy from Macquarie University and would go on to become the Head of Government for Executive Search firm Salt & Shein.

The Senator has also served as a Non-Executive Director of StreetWork, an organisation providing at-risk teenagers with supports, including accommodation, drug and alcohol therapy, protection from family violence and one-on-one mentoring to get kids back to school – or work – in safe environments.

Since joining the Liberal Party in 2002 Senator Hughes has embraced the party’s values to drive her leadership and advocacy roles.

About Hollie Alexandra Hughes

Hollie Alexandra Hughes is an Australian politician and member of the Liberal Party. She was elected as a Senator for New South Wales in the 2019 federal election. Hughes was unsuccessful in her Senate candidacy in the 2016 federal election. However, during the 2017 parliamentary eligibility crisis, she won the countback to determine the replacement for disqualified Senator Fiona Nash. But, the High Court of Australia ruled that Hughes was ineligible for election due to her employment as a member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

In November 2018, Hughes won the most votes in the Liberal Party’s Senate preselection ballot for the 2019 federal election. She was first on the Coalition’s Senate ticket in New South Wales at the 2019 election.

Hughes was born in Adelaide on 12 February 1975. She is the oldest of three children and attended Perth’s John XXIII College and Sydney’s Loreto Kirribilli during her school years. She studied for a Bachelor of Arts (Communications) at Charles Sturt University in Bathurst and completed a master’s degree in public policy at Macquarie University.

Hughes worked as an adviser to Liberal senators Bill Heffernan and Concetta Fierravanti-Wells. She has spent a decade on the State Executive of the Liberal Party of Australia and attained the position of Country Vice-President of the State Party during this tenure. Hughes was described as a “regional powerbroker” of the party, advocating for the people of rural New South Wales, whose political views were centre-right, with a particular focus on issues pertaining to rural Australia. She is a “passionate advocate for rural and regional New South Wales, having led campaigns to improve transport options and health services for the bush.”

Hughes was the founder and chair of the Country Autism Network, created to facilitate greater community awareness of regional children affected by autism, and develop more sophisticated support mechanisms for them and their families. She began the network following the diagnosis of her middle child with autism, recognising a lack of support and relevant information available to families in regional areas regarding the condition.

After Hughes failed to be elected to the Senate in 2016, she was appointed to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in a part-time capacity. When Senator Fiona Nash was found to be ineligible, making Hughes likely to be found to be her replacement, Hughes resigned from this position in an attempt to prevent herself from being found ineligible. However, the High Court decided to further investigate Hughes’ eligibility due to her position on the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, as holding any office of profit under the Crown makes a person incapable of being chosen or of sitting as a senator. Hughes’ subsequent resignation from the position on the Tribunal had to be investigated by the Court to determine whether she would be eligible for election.

On 27 October 2017, the High Court, sitting as the Court of Disputed Returns, considered the issues raised by the Senate referring to Section 376 of the Commonwealth Electoral Act.