Overview
- Moira Deeming has secured a two-week pause to the state executive’s planned vote after filing in the Victorian Supreme Court and a one-day hearing is scheduled later this month to hear her procedural fairness challenge.
- Court documents show Deeming is seeking to disqualify four state executive members from deciding her preselection on grounds of actual or perceived bias and says she should have faced internal disciplinary processes first.
- Victoria Police reviewed CCTV from a crowded Macedonian community event in Sunshine on May 23 and found footage that appeared to show Matthew Guy place a hand on Deeming’s shoulder rather than put her in a headlock, leading police to dismiss the headlock allegation.
- Deeming posted a video apologising for the political distractions the saga has caused but said she misunderstood the term 'headlock' and will not apologise for a claim she says was made in good faith, while Opposition Leader Jess Wilson has supported Guy and Guy has left open possible legal action.
- The dispute has moved from party rooms to the courts with party sources rejecting mediation, and its outcome could change the Liberal ticket for the November state election and set a legal precedent for how internal party preselection fights are handled.