Legislative Assembly · District of Ripon
Taylah Brennan-Jones
Last verified 29 Sept 2026
Seat context — Ripon›
Ripon is a Labor-held marginal seat in western Victoria, and a genuine three-cornered Coalition contest in 2026. Labor's Martha Haylett won it in 2022 with 38.5% of first preferences and 53.0% two-party-preferred against the Liberals' Louise Staley, and is recontesting against the Nationals' Jo Armstrong and the Liberals' Megan Read (who replaced Andrew Kilmartin after his Huntington's-disease-related withdrawal). The Greens' Tim Drylie, One Nation's Donna Buxton and the Victorian Socialists' Taylah Brennan-Jones are also standing, and The Tally Room says Labor's hold is far from solid and could fall to either the Nationals or One Nation.
Background
Platform
Where they stand, issue by issue — grounded in 2026 Victorian polling, not assumed. Every position is tagged with how we know it.
Fully funded regional healthcare, public and affordable housing, expanded public transport routes, youth support, and tackling economic disparity and corporate influence.
"Working-class people in Ripon keep our communities running and collectively we hold the key to building a better and fairer society."
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 economic disparity and corporate influence in politics as concerns.
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
A summary of the party's policing policy says it would raise the age of criminal responsibility to 16; nothing is attributed to Brennan-Jones personally.
Housing affordability and supply
Names public and affordable housing as a priority, drawing on personal experience of housing insecurity.
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 centres on new revenue including a 10% annual billionaire wealth tax; nothing on debt levels is attributed to Brennan-Jones.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Wants expanded public transport routes in the region.
A summary of the party's transport policy says it would make public transport free.
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 youth support services and opportunities as priorities, and cites gaps in education.
Health and healthcare access
Wants fully funded, accessible regional healthcare, and works supporting people with disabilities.
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
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Climate and energy transition
A summary of the party's energy policies says it would move to 100% publicly owned renewable energy; nothing is attributed to Brennan-Jones personally.
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 Brennan-Jones personally.
Regional and rural Victoria
Advocates increased public investment in rural and regional services to create sustainable communities.
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.
Brennan-Jones runs on the Victorian Socialists' statewide platform, and their priorities match it. SSelf-stated — VS-TBJ, VS-POLICIESVictorian Socialists, "Taylah Brennan-Jones"View sourceVictorian Socialists, "Policies"View source
No point of divergence was found.
Track record & prior candidacies
Their profile mentions no prior candidacy. SSelf-stated — VS-TBJVictorian Socialists, "Taylah Brennan-Jones"View source
They are not among the candidates in the 2022 Ripon results; the Victorian Socialists' 2018 candidate was Bronwyn Jennings (0.55%). VVerified — WIKI-RIPON-RESWikipedia, "Electoral results for the district of Ripon"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.
Brennan-Jones has not previously contested an election, so they have no funding entitlement from an earlier contest.