Bell Bay Advanced Manufacturing Zone chief operating officer Luke Moore will be Labor’s candidate for Windermere at next year’s Legislative Council elections.
Labor leader Josh Willie announced the pick on Tuesday. In a statement, he said Moore was “a powerful voice for regional workers”.
Labor said Moore had more than 30 years’ experience in management, marine engineering and energy, in Tasmania and overseas.
Willie said Moore played a key role in securing the future of Bell Bay Aluminium. He said Moore also fought to stop Liberty Bell Bay from closing.
Under a new deal, Hydro Tasmania will keep supplying power to Bell Bay Aluminium until the end of 2031.
Administrators announced on July 16 that the Liberty Bell Bay manganese smelter would close straight away after a sale fell through. More than 200 workers lost their jobs.
“I was in the room when the Liberty Bell Bay workers lost their jobs. I could see the pain in their eyes,” Moore told reporters on Tuesday.
“For me this is personal. Some of those workers are here with me today.”
He said they had worked hard to stop the closure and there were solutions that were not taken up.
Asked what those were, Moore said several parties had been interested in keeping the smelter going, but power prices were a big factor.
“Hydro should be doing more. Hydro was built to supply industry,” he said.
Moore said he led BBAMZ’s jobs response for the former Liberty workers through its employment hub, NEBHub, which had found 34 new jobs for them.
He said the closures of Liberty Bell Bay and Boag’s Brewery had hit the northern economy hard in recent months.
Moore said his priorities were secure local jobs, better pathways into trades and skilled work and reliable services that keep pace with local communities.
“I’m an engineer. I see problems, I fix problems,” he said.
“I’m not running to warm a seat. I’m running to be a change maker.”
Moore said he would leave his BBAMZ job if elected. Until then, he will campaign in his own time and on leave and step back from any dealings with the government.
Moore contested Bass for Labor at the July 2025 state election but did not win a seat, finishing with 1,499 first-preference votes (2.2%).
Liberal Nick Duigan has held Windermere since 2021. That year he beat Labor’s Geoff Lyons with 54.1% of the vote after preferences.
Windermere is one of three upper house seats due to go to the polls in 2027, along with Derwent and Mersey.
