Independent MP Nicolette Boele retains seat of Bradfield after Liberal opponent drops court challenge

Independent MP Nicolette Boele has taken the seat of Bradfield, with her Liberal opponent Gisele Kapterian finally conceding defeat four months after the election. Ms Kapterian, a senior Salesforce executive and staffer to Julie Bishop, said after two very different ballot counts she was now satisfied the correct outcome had been declared, and that she had dropped her court challenge against the result. The Liberal hopeful had launched a legal challenge asking the Court of Disrupted Returns to assess the validity of 151 ballot papers in the seat she lost by 26 votes, however she has since pulled the petition for a final review. The seat, in Sydney’s North Shore, is now the most marginal electorate in Australia, however prior to 2025 it had only been held by a Liberal MP since its creation in 1972. It was last held by longtime Liberal minister Paul Fletcher, however he retired prior to the May 3 poll. In a statement shared on Instagram, Ms Kapterian said she was “satisfied that overall, the correct outcome has been declared”. Sussan Ley will now need to determine whether she will reassign Ms Kapterian’s shadow assistant minister position. The Opposition Leader also loses an ally in the party room following Ms Kapterian’s official concession. “With two different outcomes declaring two different winners, I’m grateful our electoral system anticipates and supports the need for further scrutiny through a statutory right,” she said. “This is particularly so given the often difficult and subjective nature of ballot interpretation.” In a parting message to her Liberal colleagues she added that Australia was at a “crucial juncture” and needed a “needs strong, cohesive, and modern Liberal Party that speaks to the concerns of Australians”. “I am the daughter of immigrants who came to this country because of the promise of Australia,” she said. “I believe the Liberal Party’s future success depends on a policy agenda that speak to aspirational Australians.” Ms Boele acknowledged her official win and said representing Bradfield would be the “privilege of my lifetime”. “Today Ms Kapterian conceded defeat in Bradfield and abandoned her challenge in the Court of Disputed Returns,” she said. “Being part of this process has given me an even greater appreciation for the safeguards we have in place, and the value of every single vote. “While we watch checks and balances erode in other countries, our electoral and judicial processes are something we can genuinely celebrate here at home.” Australian Electoral Commissioner Jeff Pope said the body left “absolutely no stone unturned” and the process showed Australia’s strong integrity in the electoral process. “I’d like to highlight in particular the work of the AEC’s staff supervising the count, the recount, and the Court of Disputed Returns challenge for Bradfield,” he said. “Their hard work, and their commitment to election integrity has met the very high standards that Australians rightly expect from the AEC at every federal election.”