Legislative Assembly · District of Yan Yean
Lauren Kathage
Last verified 30 Sept 2026
Seat context — Yan Yean›
Yan Yean is a Labor-held seat on Melbourne's northern fringe covering Mernda, Yarrambat, Laurimar, Whittlesea and Wandong across the Whittlesea, Nillumbik and Mitchell council areas. Lauren Kathage succeeded Danielle Green in 2022, winning with 41.4% of first preferences and 54.3% two-party-preferred against the Liberals' Richard Welch, a margin of about 4 points, and is recontesting. The Tally Room calls it a must-win seat for the Liberals and says One Nation is an emerging threat in some booths. The 2026 field found is six candidates: Kathage, the Liberals' Amanda Dow, the Greens' Gufran Mohammed, One Nation's Jeremy Johnson, the Victorian Socialists' Andrew Bell and the Animal Justice Party's Sinan Okatan.
Background
Has more than twenty years' community work experience in Australia and internationally, including leading remote housing and homelessness initiatives. VVerified — PARL-KATHAGEParliament of Victoria, "Lauren Kathage — Member profile"View source
Managed large programs on healthcare worker training, regional income generation and disability inclusion in education. VVerified — PARL-KATHAGEParliament of Victoria, "Lauren Kathage — Member profile"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.
Community-centred development, local jobs and good transport for families, and equal opportunities for people with disabilities.
Says the chance to have a bigger impact on people's lives prompted her to run for parliament.
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
Labor's 2026 platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, includes a vehicle registration rebate of up to $186, half-price public transport fares from June to December 2026 and free midday electricity from October 2026.
Crime and community safety
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, includes the 2025 bail law changes.
Housing affordability and supply
Has led remote housing and homelessness initiatives.
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, is built around the Big Housing Build.
State government debt and fiscal management
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, projects operating surpluses of $700 million in 2025-26 and $1 billion in 2026-27.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Wants families to have "local jobs and good transport".
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, includes $1.04 billion for roads.
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
Advocates equal opportunities for people with disabilities in education, drawing on her program work.
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, includes $5.5 billion of new education investment in 2026-27 and the Free TAFE guarantee.
Health and healthcare access
Has managed healthcare worker training programs.
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, includes $3.9 billion of new health investment in 2026-27.
Urban planning and housing density
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Climate and energy transition
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, targets 65% renewables by 2030 and 95% by 2035.
Treaty and First Nations affairs
Labor's platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, cites implementation of the Statewide Treaty Act 2025.
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.
Track record & prior candidacies
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 the sitting member, Kathage met the "elected" limb of the test in 2022, and her 41.4% first-preference vote was also well above 4%.