Legislative Council · Eastern Victoria Region
Renee Heath
Last verified 30 Sept 2026
Seat context — Eastern Victoria Region›
Eastern Victoria elects 5 MLCs and comprises 11 Legislative Assembly districts spanning the Mornington Peninsula through the Dandenongs to Gippsland — Bass, Evelyn, Gippsland East, Gippsland South, Hastings, Monbulk, Mornington, Morwell, Narracan, Nepean and Pakenham. A bill abolishing group voting tickets for the Council has passed the Assembly and is before the Legislative Council's 11–13 August sitting.
Background
Led community projects that improved children's health and the local environment, and has an extensive volunteer background. SSelf-stated — PARL-RHParliament of Victoria, "Dr Renee Heath MLC"View source
Says she worked with the Gippsland Bushfire Recovery Program and was a founding member of a women's collective in Gippsland. SSelf-stated — LIBV-RENEE-HEATHLiberal Victoria, "Renee Heath — Liberal candidate profile" (15 Dec 2022)View source
Says she was appointed Shadow Assistant Minister for Multicultural Affairs and for Victims of Family Violence in 2025. SSelf-stated — LIBV-RENEE-HEATHLiberal Victoria, "Renee Heath — Liberal candidate profile" (15 Dec 2022)View source
Her electorate office is at 103 Main Street, Pakenham. SSelf-stated — PARL-RHParliament of Victoria, "Dr Renee Heath MLC"View source
Wikipedia records she was born in Morwell. RReported — WP-RHWikipedia, "Renee Heath"View source
Platform
Where they stand, issue by issue — grounded in 2026 Victorian polling, not assumed. Every position is tagged with how we know it.
State debt reduction, small business recovery, expanding health system capacity, education reform, restoring free speech, local industry and jobs, and bushfire prevention and recovery.
Names reducing state debt, small business recovery, health capacity, education reform, free speech, local industry and bushfire prevention as priorities.
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 small business recovery as a priority.
Crime and community safety
Holds the shadow portfolios for Youth Justice, and Crime Prevention and Victim Support.
The Coalition's bail and sentencing policy, per the ABC, would automatically deny bail to reoffenders under a one-strike rule.
Housing affordability and supply
The Coalition would lift the first-home buyer threshold to remove stamp duty on homes up to $1 million, per a housing-policy comparison.
State government debt and fiscal management
Names state debt reduction as a priority.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
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
Names education reform as a priority.
Health and healthcare access
Names expanding health system capacity as a priority, drawing on her chiropractic career.
Urban planning and housing density
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Climate and energy transition
Holds the Bay Protection shadow portfolio and names bushfire prevention and recovery as a priority.
Treaty and First Nations affairs
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Regional and rural Victoria
Names local industry and jobs as a priority.
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.
Wikipedia records that in 2024 she abstained from voting on a Labor wind energy target despite the Liberals opposing it. RReported — WP-RHWikipedia, "Renee Heath"View source
Otherwise her positions follow the Liberals' platform.
Track record & prior candidacies
Shadow Minister for Youth Justice, for Crime Prevention and Victim Support, and for Bay Protection, per her parliamentary profile. SSelf-stated — PARL-RHParliament of Victoria, "Dr Renee Heath MLC"View source
Was Secretary of the Parliamentary Liberal Party from 20 December 2022 until 12 May 2023. RReported — WP-RHWikipedia, "Renee Heath"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.
As a sitting MLC elected in 2022, Heath met the "elected" limb of the test for that contest, so her campaign qualified for public funding.