Jacinta Allan

Jacinta Marie Allan (born 19 September 1973) is an Australian politician who served as the 49th premier of Victoria from 2023 to 2026, holding office as the leader of the Victorian Labor Party. She has been the member of Parliament (MP) for the district of Bendigo East since 1999. Born in Bendigo, Allan was elected to the Legislative Assembly at the 1999 state election at the age of 25, becoming the youngest female parliamentarian in Victorian history. She entered the ministry in 2002, serving in a range of portfolios including education, skills, and regional development under provincial Steve Bracks and John Brumby. During this period she oversaw initiatives to address teacher shortages, initiated a review of school governance, and faced criticism over school funding and infrastructure. Following Labor's defeat at the 2010 state election, Allan served in the opposition shadow ministry under Daniel Andrews. When Labor returned to government in 2014, she was appointed Minister for Public Transport and later Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, overseeing major infrastructure projects including the Suburban Rail Loop, Metro Tunnel, and Melbourne Airport Rail. Allan was appointed as the 29th deputy premier in June 2022 following the resignation of James Merlino, a promotion widely interpreted as positioning her as Andrews' eventual successor. Allan became premier on 27 September 2023 after Andrews' resignation, the second woman to hold the position after Joan Kirner. As premier, Allan pursued a program of housing and planning reform, including overhauling planning laws to reduce approval times and rezone areas near transport hubs for higher-density development. Her government oversaw the completion of the Metro Tunnel and West Gate Tunnel projects, and enacted Australia's first treaty with First Peoples. Her premiership was also marked by challenges including a corruption scandal involving the Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU) and declining...