"The Burleigh Heads local said the electorate of McPherson at the southern Gold Coast had long been overlooked in the federal arena due to its status as a safe-seat, a perception she hopes to change.

“When a party assumes it has our vote, our needs fall by the wayside,” Ms Murray-Bartlett said.

“We need to put the Gold Coast first.”

Her promise to voters was that she would be directly answerable to residents in McPherson, not obscured by party rhetoric.

“I want to be our community champion in Canberra, and I’ll vote for what is best for the Gold Coast, free from party lines,” she said at her launch on Saturday.

as reported in the Gold Coast Bulletin (behind paywall).