Shattering the ‘Glass Cliff’

by Jemma Tribe /

The Liberal Party’s women woes are well-documented and, again, they’ve paid the price at the polls. But what can be done about it?

A report released in April this year by the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at The Australian National University (ANU), shows only 32% of the Coalition's candidates at the 2025 Federal election were women, compared to the Australian Labor Party’s 56%.

Furthermore, female Coalition candidates were more likely to be running in seats described by the report's authors as; ‘risky, precarious, or downright unwinnable’ – a phenomenon they’ve dubbed the ‘glass cliff’.

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As someone who spent 15 years in the Liberal party, I’ve seen this phenomenon from the inside too often and have some ideas on how the Liberals should shatter it, if they’re to stand on some solid ground in the future.

Quotas or Status Quo

In my younger years I was not in favour of quotas. I held an ideological view that all decisions should be based on merit and not on gender.

However, my thinking evolved, and I formed a view that quotas are needed, even if only for a time, to increase the critical mass of women needed to change the culture. 

There is a difference between equity and equality and if the current imbalance is to be addressed, women are going to need ‘a hand up, not a handout’ – a phrase the Liberal party is fond of and should apply here. 

What’s more, quotas already exist within the party.

Within State Executive there are female and even country identified positions. Why could this not extend to candidates in order to be truly representative of the communities the party is seeking to represent?

The Australian Labor Party (ALP) adopted mandatory quotas 30 years ago and have reaped the rewards.

In this Federal election, seven of the seats won back by Labor were won by female candidates. The percentage of women in the Government’s ranks will mirror the female population in the community – what a novel concept!

Preselection

While we’re on the topic of representation, the question needs to be asked: Are preselectors representative of the communities they are seeking to select a candidate to represent? 

Different countries and different parties have their own selection processes. In the NSW Liberal Party, anyone who has been a financial member for two consecutive years or more in the seat is entitled to register to become a preselector.

They may not reside in the area. They may not have even been actively involved at a branch level. But they can attend a preselection and vote. There is also a ‘central component’ from Head Office.

Members need to consider if this has served them well, or if another model should be discussed such as ‘open preselection’ where the local community is also involved.

Efforts must also be made to engage a broader diversity of people at the grassroots membership level. 

I hesitate to use the D word here and I don’t put it in lightly, but I believe it also needs to be considered and stamped out….

Discrimination is not new but there are far too many instances of women being subjected to inappropriate questions during preselection that their male counterparts are not asked.

A 2003 parliamentary report, Women in Parliament: The Current Situation, states:

“Sex discrimination is widespread as many female politicians can recount tales of being asked personal questions by selection committees relating to their marital status and childcare arrangements when male candidates generally are not asked such questions. Factional allegiances also facilitate the preselection of men for seats because of ‘old boy’ loyalties.”

It’s sad that 22 years later, the same could still be written.

When I resigned from the Liberal Party in 2024, I shared some of my own experiences in the hope that it could lead to change.

I recounted being told by a male preselector that I should go on a ‘crash diet’ to be slim and attractive enough to be electable.

Sadly, to date, the party’s response to my resignation after 15 years has been:

“Thank you for your email. You are a joint member, and we would like to ask if your Husband is also resigning? If he is, can we have a resignation for him as well.”

I felt like writing back: 'You don’t want to see his letter!'

Mentoring

Many say, if you can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen and, to some extent, I accept that’s true. But you can certainly benefit from the help of someone in there who has cooked the recipe before.

Where women have been elsewhere engaged in family, community and professional lives and may be unfamiliar with political machinations - or if they face social, financial or cultural barriers - help would be invaluable to navigating these challenges to bring to the table the life experience they have to offer.

Culture

I remember, after a Liberal Party State Executive Meeting in Nowra, sitting in a bar with a friend and two male members of the State Executive who were drinking and discussing who should be in what seat, as though it was up to them to choose.

They got on to the position of the next Young Liberal President and conceded, for optics sake, it needed to be a woman. They laughed at the first suggestion and congratulated themselves on the second; a young woman who ‘looks good and will do what we say’.

The revelation was a startling one for me and very clearly demonstrated their attitudes towards women. 

To see the glass cliff shatter, we need a seismic shift in any or all these areas.

Jemma Tribe is an Award-Winning Social Entrepreneur, Business Leader & Author of A Handbook for Women on Their Way Up at jemmatribe.com.au