WHITTLESEA: Mayor’s Liberal background
Whittlesea’s new Mayor Aidan McLindon was formerly a Liberal-National politician in the Queens-land State Parliament, resigning to become an independent MP, and then becoming National Director for Bob Katter’s Australian Party.
Aidan Patrick McLindon (born February 26, 1980) was first elected for the seat of Beaudesert to the Queensland State Parliament for the Liberal National Party at the 2009 state election.
He resigned from that party to become an independent in May 2010.
In June 2010 he established The Queensland Party, which he merged with Katter’s Australian Party in August 2011. He lost his seat to the LNP at the 2012 election.
Bob Katter appointed McLindon as National Director for the newly created Katter’s Australian Party.
Some 18 months later McLindon resigned to spend more time with his family.
McLindon established an independent political consultancy, AMac Consultants Pty Ltd, following the 2013 Federal Election.
McLindon was born in Darwin, and was a bar attendant and musician before entering politics. He attended school at Springwood State High School where he was elected a prefect.
McLindon gained some publicity in the media for his musical interests, especially his involvement in the alternative rock band KiLLTV.
In 2005, he was fined $250 on a public nuisance charge after jumping on the set of the Big Brother season 5 finale as Gretel Killeen prepared to announce the winner.
His military service included roles as an infantry soldier and driver 1997–2002 in the Australian Army.
McLindon cites an early interest in politics at the age of 15 from work experience at Queensland Parliament House in 1995. He later went on to complete a degree in Government and Politics, majoring in Public Policy, at Griffith University.
In 1998 McLindon was preselected by the Liberal Party to run for the state seat of Waterford as Australia’s youngest politically endorsed candidate at the age of 17 years, where he claims to have doorknocked 17,500 homes.He came third of three candidates.