WA's Regional Development Minister says she is not the reason South West Region MP Adele Farina has been bumped from Labor's Upper House ticket ahead of next year's state election.
Alannah MacTiernan, who is currently based in Perth, has been named in second spot on Labor's ticket behind current member Sally Talbot.
Hannah Beazley — a potential nominee for the Treasurer's seat of Victoria Park before he reversed his decision to quit politics — will take the third position, bumping Ms Farina from the ballot.
It follows months of speculation about what Ms Farina called a "factional deal" over Ms MacTiernan's seat in the Legislative Council.
Ms MacTiernan has confirmed that Pierre Yang will lead the ticket for the North Metropolitan Region but rejected claims of a factional deal.
"I made it very clear that if I was going to stand again, given my focus has been so much on regional development and agriculture, I wanted to represent a regional area," Ms MacTiernan said.
Farina furious
In a statement, Ms Farina said she was disappointed she had not been preselected after 19 years of service.
"It is personally disappointing Ms MacTiernan, whom I have strongly supported throughout her career, and who has campaigned for party rank and file participation in preselections and against this kind of deal-making by faction leaders, has willingly been involved in this cynical factional exercise," she said.
In a previous interview, Mr Farina said her vote against voluntary assisted dying had been raised with her amid talks about preselection.
Wes Hartley, president of Labor's Vasse branch, described the move as "outrageous" and a devastating loss for the region.
"I can only see this as a betrayal of Adele Farina who has served faithfully in both opposition and in Government of the South West Region," Mr Hartley said.
"I think the strong positions she's taken on a range of issues … are part of the reason why the Labor Party is in such a good state in the South West."
Farina's future already set
Ms MacTiernan said it would have been a similar outcome for Ms Farina regardless of her decision to stand.
"It was pretty clear that me standing for pre-selection was not the reason why Adele was not pre-selected," she said.
"The party was looking to how we go forward.
"I think there was an issue of who was going to be supported and I think we might have had a similar outcome regardless of whether or not I was standing."
