Meet the two trailblazers wanting to change the way politics is done - and make it more equitable

To say that Lucy Bradlow and Bronwen Bock are making waves in the Australian political landscape is quite the understatement. These two powerhouses want to change the way things are done in Australia – challenging the status quo to allow Parliament to better represent the Australia we live in, and allow more women to take up space in the corridors of power.

If they aren’t on your radar already, Lucy and Bronwen are Victoria’s independent job-sharing candidates looking to secure a Victorian Senate position - together. They’re asking the ultimate question to the political establishment: why can’t we job-share in politics - particularly if it means it would increase flexibility and in turn, make our government more representative? Allowing greater flexibility benefits not just women - but people of all genders and ages.

If they aren’t on your radar already, Lucy and Bronwen are Victoria’s independent job-sharing candidates looking to secure a Victorian Senate position - together. They’re asking the ultimate question to the political establishment: why can’t we job-share in politics - particularly if it means it would increase flexibility and in turn, make our government more representative? Allowing greater flexibility benefits not just women - but people of all genders and ages.

Bronwen is a finance professional and gender equality consultant who worked in investment banking, mergers and acquisitions and venture capital. “Like many parents with young families, I am not currently in a position to work full-time, 70 hours a week and 22 weeks a year in Canberra,” she says. “Despite this I have always been drawn to service, for example joining my kinder and school councils in recent years, to having an impact in my community and to making people’s lives better.”

Lucy – a lawyer and former advisor at the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) – has different reasons for job-sharing to Bronwen. “Having worked in the Federal Parliament, I know that it’s not a working environment that brings out the best in me. Politics can be aggressive, individualistic and unfriendly,” she says. “But I also know that being a politician can be a way to drive real and lasting change for people. Working with Bronwen, I want to show that we can serve Victorians while working together in a supportive and collegiate way.”

The pair launched their original campaign and sparked big conversations back in April this year – when they were originally running as the candidate for Higgins. When the Australian Electoral Commission announced it was abolishing the seat of Higgins, Lucy and Bronwyn pivoted to a Senate campaign, inspired by backers who encouraged them not to give up.

“There’s a lot of people around us who said you shouldn’t give up. Because of the broader conversation [the campaign] is sparking about the way we work, and something that we’re into the way we work and the structures that have been created around the way we work – and build new structures that suit modern Australians” Lucy tells MECCA M-POWER.

Determined to continue their campaign and work to restructure the way politics is done in this country, they set their sights on the Senate, and have launched their new political party, Better Together.

We love how Lucy and Bronwen are challenging the way things are done and paving a trail for future conversations around politics and flexible-work. So, who inspires them?

For Bronwen, it’s her mother - whose story draws parallels to the iconic novel Lessons in Chemistry, which tells the story of chemist and cooking host Elizabeth Zott and highlights the experiences of women in the sciences in the 1960s.

Bronwen’s mother was a mathematics professor who applied to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) for an electrical engineering role in her department (fun fact: Bronwen’s mother actually met Lucy’s dad at Melbourne University). Bronwen says that at the time, gender diversity was “so bad” that they were able to apply to VCAT and be successful.

“It’s so important to me to have that role model - someone who cares about doing things differently,” Bronwen tells MECCA M-POWER. “Putting yourself out there, and striving to do things differently.”

For Lucy, Taylor Swift is a trailblazer she looks up to - particularly as Lucy becomes a public figure in Victoria and beyond. “You’re often tempted to think about trailblazers as people who are older than you,” Lucy says.

“I’ve recently been inspired by people who are younger than me, and not conforming to social expectations. Taylor Swift has this great quote that I read recently, that says people will tell you that you can’t do this or that, but you have to trust your gut.”

One thing is certain: Lucy and Bronwen are sparking a conversation around flexibility and representation that will stick around long after the upcoming election - both inside and outside of politics.