Simon Kennedy

Kennedy was born in West Ryde, Sydney.^[3] Since his mother worked full time as a teacher, he was substantially raised by his grandfather, a World War II veteran.^[4] His grandmother had also seen wartime service, as an Army Nurse.^[4]

He attended Epping Boys High School, where his mother and stepfather both taught.^[3] Simon was elected school captain, became the President of the students' representative council and he served on the Ryde City Youth council.^[3][4]

In 2006, he graduated in law and commerce from the University of New South Wales.^[2][3]

Kennedy's career has centred on the public sector.^[5][6] Having graduated from university, he was hired by the law firm Clayton Utz, from where he provided advice on energy reforms to the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.^[4][7]

However, he soon moved to McKinsey & Company.^[6] He would spend 14 years at the management consultancy as an analyst; first in Sydney but later in New York and Washington, D.C.^[4] Reported projects included government level assignments, in North America, Asia and the Caribbean nation of Haiti.^[8] He returned to Sydney in 2016 to establish the firm's Australian Public Sector Practice, and was made a partner.^[4]

While in this role, he provided strategic advice to government for its Covid response, and served on the Committee for Sydney, developing plans for innovation precincts in the Greater Sydney area.^[7][9][10] After leaving McKinsey in 2022, he formed the tech investment firm Banksia with former Uber executive Damian Kassabgi.^[11][4]

Kennedy first run for parliament in 2022, falling short; but succeeded in winning a federal seat in 2024.^[12] He is a member of the National Right faction of the Liberal Party.^[13]

Kennedy made a bid to succeed the retiring member for the Division of Bennelong, John Alexander.^[6] Although historically considered to be a safe Liberal seat, Labor's Jerome Laxale won the two candidate preferred count 50.98% to Kennedy's 49.02%.^[14]

Regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, Kennedy indicated some libertarian preferences.^[15] At an event called A Stand in the Park he expressed concerns about the vaccine mandates which restricted travel and business.^[16] In a later radio interview, he clarified his view, saying:

"I'm pro-vaccine. I'm pro-science. Of course me and my family are fully vaccinated. My wife's an infectious disease doctor, worked throughout the pandemic on the frontline with the doctors and nurses, to get us to 95% vaccination... But I'm not about shouting people down if they have a different opinion to mine.^[17]

In early 2024 the Division of Cook became open, with a by-election slated for Saturday 13 April.^[18] Kennedy and his family moved into the community before the vote, making their home in Woolooware, then began campaigning in shops and beaches.^[4][8]

Six contenders were considered by 300 local members of the Liberal Party.^[19][8] Other candidates for preselection included mayor of Sutherland Shire Carmelo Pesce, Benjamin Britton, and Gwen Cherne, the Veteran Family Advocate Commissioner.^[4]

In the meeting of party members on 4 March, Kennedy won the Liberal preselection to contest the seat.^[20] He had won support from several party elders in the process, including former NSW Premiers Nick Greiner and Dominic Perrottet, current state Liberal leader Mark Speakman, along with sitting federal parliamentarians Angus Taylor and Senator Dave Sharma.^[7] Conversely, Labor announced they would not contest the seat, leaving the Greens candidate Martin Moore as Kennedy's strongest opponent.^[21][22] Kennedy's campaign message was reported to be aspirational, supporting Australians who want to improve their lives.^[15]

On 13 April 2024, Kennedy won the 2024 Cook by-election with an increased share of votes for the Liberal Party, both in primary votes and in the two-candidate preferred result, in which Kennedy received 71% of the vote.^[23][24] He was sworn into Parliament in Canberra on 14 May 2024.^[25]

In his first speech to Parliament Kennedy spoke of generational inequality and argued for deregulation of small businesses and for a mechanism where states and councils would compete for funding, with money going to those who can deliver services like housing, healthcare, and infrastructure quickly and effectively.^{[26] [27]}

"Right now, our country is governed for the squeaky wheel, the vested interests, the large corporates with their lobbyists and their megaphones, it's not for the silent majority and definitely not for the small businesses... The promise of the next generation being better off than their parents is disappearing rapidly and it is hard to tell what this could do to Australia's social fabric if allowed to continue."^[28]

In November 2025, as part of an internal Liberal Party debate on climate change action, Kennedy was one of a small number of Liberal members of the House of Representatives representing capital city seats who spoke in favour of dumping the Liberal Party’s previously held climate policy of reaching net zero emissions by 2050.^[29]

Kennedy is married to Nila Dharan, an American-born infectious disease doctor whom he met during his work overseas.^[3] He has two children.^[4] He is a runner, and, in 2024, won the title of fittest politician, surpassing Andrew Leigh, who had previously held the title.^[30]