Independent digital media publication Cheek Media founder and CEO Hannah Ferguson has revealed she will run as an independent candidate against Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in his long-held Sydney seat of Grayndler at the next federal election.
Ferguson, who delivered the keynote address at B&T’s Women in Media Awards last year, revealed the move on social media on Monday, saying she wanted to offer the Inner West “better representation” after months of speaking with locals through community events.
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The CEO was born in Marrickville in 1998, two years after Albanese was first elected to the seat.
“At the next federal election, I intend to run as an independent candidate in my home seat of Grayndler. The seat is currently represented by the Prime Minister,” Ferguson wrote. “I want to build a strong, community informed, evidence-based policy platform that builds on the issues that I am already hearing.”
The 28-year-old said her decision came after originally announcing plans to run for the Senate, with repeated conversations prompting her to instead contest Grayndler.
“Towards the end of 2025, I realised that the more conversations I was having, the more the question came up: why not Grayndler?” she said.
“I have spent a long time considering this question, because it is a decision I take incredibly seriously.”
Ferguson said she had grown increasingly frustrated with Australia’s political system, arguing the major parties had become disconnected from the communities they represent.
“The political system is broken. The major parties are answering to vested interests, not the communities they have been elected to serve,” she said. “The Albanese Government currently holds a historic 94-seat super majority in the House of Representatives – yet all I hear from voters is disappointment and frustration.”
She added: “I am not here to play politics, that is just another reason Australians are fed up with the political party machinery.
“This is about fighting for better community representation and ensuring that local needs are heard and acted on. My intention is to keep running local events, keep listening to feedback and to keep learning from my community.”
Ferguson also used the announcement to address what the move means for Cheek Media, the independent digital publication she founded six years ago.
She said it had already become “challenging” to balance political ambitions with running the business and planned to eventually step aside.
“It is already challenging to navigate political candidacy with this small business that I have grown for the last six years,” she said.
“The next federal election could be as late as May 2028, and it is my intention to step away from the business at some stage next year to campaign full-time.”
However, Ferguson stressed she wanted the publication to continue independently of her.
“For now, we have an amazing team who are delivering the progressive coverage that our audience trusts… I want Cheek to remain independent and to exist beyond me.”
Addressing the inevitable scrutiny that comes with moving from media into politics, Ferguson said her candidacy was driven by conversations with her community rather than publicity.
“My job makes this unique. I knew as soon as I began hosting community events that the media would report on this, and that’s what happened over the weekend,” she said. “But this is not about headlines or clickbait, it’s about hearing directly from people in my community who feel unrepresented.”
“I believe we deserve better representation,” she said.
Albanese comfortably retained Grayndler at the 2025 federal election, securing more than 66 per cent of the two-party preferred vote, while Greens candidate Hannah Thomas received just over 33 per cent.
