Legislative Assembly · District of Bayswater
Alec Ferguson
Last verified 29 Sept 2026
Seat context — Bayswater›
Bayswater is a 38.76 km2 outer-eastern Melbourne district in the North-Eastern Metropolitan Region, covering Bayswater, Heathmont, Kilsyth South, The Basin, and parts of Bayswater North, Boronia, Ringwood and Wantirna. It is currently held by Labor's Jackson Taylor, who won it at the 2022 election on a two-candidate-preferred vote of 54.23% to 45.77% (an 8.46-point margin) over the Liberal candidate. Taylor announced his retirement from politics in September 2025, making Bayswater an open contest at the 2026 election.
Background
Is a student studying Arabic at Deakin University, per his Victorian Socialists profile. SSelf-stated — VS-FERGUSONVictorian Socialists, "Alec Ferguson"View source
No employment is stated.
Says he has been involved in community activism since 2021, including organising the student movement for Palestine at Deakin University and the Gaza Solidarity Encampment. SSelf-stated — VS-FERGUSONVictorian Socialists, "Alec Ferguson"View source
Says he has been active in campaigns supporting refugee rights, opposing racism and the far right, and for climate justice. SSelf-stated — VS-FERGUSONVictorian Socialists, "Alec Ferguson"View source
His profile mentions no union role, council term or party office.
Platform
Where they stand, issue by issue — grounded in 2026 Victorian polling, not assumed. Every position is tagged with how we know it.
"No one should be deprived of good quality housing, access to healthcare, and everything else needed to live a decent life."
Argues capitalism is "a disaster" and that politicians serve wealthy interests rather than constituents.
Refugee rights, anti-racism and climate justice.
What Victorians say matters most
5 poll-led issuesCost of living and crime have ranked 1st or 2nd in every Victorian poll since mid‑2025, with debt and housing close behind — see schema §3 for the polling this grouping is based on (DemosAU, Ipsos Issues Monitor, Roy Morgan). The 0-10 'priorityScore' on each candidate's issue entries is NOT a measure of true importance or an independent ranking of what a candidate actually cares about. It reflects how much detail and specificity exists in what that candidate has actually said publicly on that issue -- a named policy mechanism and a verified voting record score higher than a one-line stated priority, regardless of the issue's real-world weight. Render this distinction in the UI wherever the score appears; do not label it just 'Priority' without the qualifier.
Cost of living
Names the cost of living, with housing, as a reason for standing, without a specific measure.
The party's fiscal policy would fund services with a 10% annual wealth tax on billionaires, a 20% bank profits tax and a 20% super-profits tax on retailers earning over $100 million.
Crime and community safety
Says he campaigns against racism and the far right.
The party's policing policy would raise the age of criminal responsibility to 16, presume bail for all offences and hold a Royal Commission into policing and corruption.
Housing affordability and supply
Says no one should be deprived of good quality housing, and blames the housing crisis on capitalism.
The party's housing policy would cut all residential rents 25% then freeze them for five years, and build at least 15,000 public housing units a year for ten years.
State government debt and fiscal management
The party's fiscal policy focuses on new revenue, including a 10% annual billionaire wealth tax and a 5% luxury property tax.
No position on state debt levels was found, and nothing on it is attributed to Ferguson.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
A summary of the party's transport policy says it would reverse privatisation, make public transport free and upgrade regional rail; nothing is attributed to Ferguson personally.
Also on the record
6 substance issuesThese don't top “biggest issue” polling, but carry real 2026 policy weight and genuine differences between parties.
Education and training
A summary of the party's education policy says it would provide universal preschool and childcare and end NAPLAN testing; nothing is attributed to Ferguson personally, although he is a student.
Health and healthcare access
Says everyone needs access to healthcare as part of a decent life.
A summary of the party's health policy says it would fully fund public healthcare and expand free community clinics.
Urban planning and housing density
A summary of the party's planning policy says it would end public land sales and require developers to fund community amenities; nothing is attributed to Ferguson personally.
Climate and energy transition
Lists climate justice among his campaigns.
The party's energy policy would move to a 100% renewable grid through public investment, cap household bills, and put energy distribution networks back into public ownership.
Treaty and First Nations affairs
A summary of the party's First Nations policy says it wants a treaty with material change beyond symbolic recognition; nothing is attributed to Ferguson personally.
Regional and rural Victoria
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Local & party context
2 fieldsNot scored the way the eleven issues above are — these are fixed facts about the seat and the party, not positions with more or less emphasis behind them.
Ferguson runs on the Victorian Socialists' statewide platform, and his activism (Palestine solidarity, refugee rights, anti-racism, climate justice) matches it. SSelf-stated — VS-FERGUSON, VS-POLICIESVictorian Socialists, "Alec Ferguson"View sourceVictorian Socialists, "Policies"View source
No point of divergence was found. His personal statements are brief, so most positions above are the party's, not his.
Track record & prior candidacies
His candidate profile mentions no prior campaign. SSelf-stated — VS-FERGUSONVictorian Socialists, "Alec Ferguson"View source
He is not among the candidates in the 2014, 2018 or 2022 Bayswater state elections, where no Victorian Socialists candidate is listed. VVerified — WIKI-BAYS-RESULTS, VEC-BAYS-2022Wikipedia, "Electoral results for the district of Bayswater"View sourceVictorian Electoral Commission, "Bayswater District results — 2022 state election"View source
Campaign, money & endorsements
Campaign logistics
Endorsements & Donations
Per the Victorian Electoral Commission's funding guidance (vec.vic.gov.au, accessed 2026-09-29 via search snippets of its independent-candidate and registered-party funding pages), a candidate is eligible for public election funding if they receive at least 4% of first-preference votes in their contest, or are elected. Funding is reimbursed against an audited statement of campaign expenditure, and advance funding must be repaid in full if the threshold is missed.
Ferguson has not previously contested an election, so he has no funding entitlement from an earlier contest.