Meet the New NSW Premier: Labor's Chris Minns

Tasmania is now the only part of Australia governed by the Liberal Party.

On Saturday, New South Wales headed to the polls to vote in a state election and decide the fate of the state.

At the time of writing, there’s still 14 seats in doubt and countless votes to be counted, but by Saturday evening, it was clear Labor had won.

Labor’s election in NSW means that Labor is in government federally and in every state and territory, save for Tasmania.

Leading the Labor charge is leader Chris Minns, who now sits as the Premier-Designate, until his official swearing-in ceremony.

But who is Chris Minns?

Born in Paddington in the late 70s, Chris Minns was raised by a school principal in St George NSW, and admired the Labor party from a young age.

Both his parents were Labor supporters, and he joined the Labor party at just 18, where he met his now-wife, Anna.

Before entering politics, Minns volunteered for the Labor party, was a part time firefighter, and a Hurstville City Councillor.

He received a bachelor's degree from the University of New England (Armidale), and later attended the Ivy League College, Princeton University, gaining a Masters in Public Policy in 2013.

After returning to Australia, Chis became a stay-at-home dad for his three sons.

Minns successfully ran for and won the seat of Kogarah in South Sydney in 2015.

More recently, Minns served as the shadow minister for Water, Corrections and Transport, before he was elected to the Leader of the Opposition role in 2021.

Outside of politics, Chris Minns is an outdoors enthusiast, a surfer, a bushwalker, and a talented guitarist.

Like his rival Dominic Perrottet, Minns is a practising Catholic.

After the COVID-19 lockdowns, Minns decided to give up drinking alcohol, and recently celebrated more than a year sober.

What is Minns promising for young people?

A large part of the election focused on hot-button issues like gambling, vaping and employment, but Labor has some policies geared towards young people.

In education, Labor wants to scrap wage limits for teachers and reduce workloads, so quality of education can be improved.

Labor also wants to aid first home buyers, accelerate renewable energy projects and increase university placements.

It’s unclear right now if it’ll be a Labor majority or minority government, but for now, Chris Minns is set to lead the state for the foreseeable future.

Header image: @ChrisMinnsMP on Twitter.