Sue Hickey


Susanne Lynnette Hickey is an Australian politician. She has been a Liberal Party member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly since the 2018 election, representing the electorate of Denison. She was previously Lord Mayor of Hobart from 2014 until 2018.
Hickey has been Speaker of the Tasmanian House of Assembly since May 2018. She unexpectedly won the Speaker position with the support of the opposition Labor and Greens parties over Liberal nominee Rene Hidding, and has stated that she will not attend Liberal Party meetings and will "mostly" vote with the Government, but will assess bills "on their merit".

Early career

Hickey first entered public life when she won the Miss Tasmania Quest in 1979. She was also a television weather girl on TVT6 for many years. She later worked in a number of retail and service positions, before starting a career in marketing. In 1991, she established her own marketing business, Slick Promotions. Hickey won the Tasmanian Businesswoman of the Year award in 2007. Hickey obtained an MBA from the University of Tasmania in 2012 whilst running her own business, being an Alderman on the Hobart City Council and being President of the Rotary Club of Hobart.

Lord Mayor of Hobart

She was a successful candidate for the Hobart City Council in the 2011 Tasmanian local government elections, elected as Alderman.
Hickey defeated incumbent Lord Mayor Damon Thomas at the 2014 local government elections, serving as the Right Honourable, The Lord Mayor of Hobart, Alderman Sue Hickey until her election to State Parliament.

State MP

In 2018, Hickey ran successfully as a Liberal candidate for Denison in the Tasmanian House of Assembly.
On 1 May 2018, at the first sitting of the House of Assembly after the election, Labor leader Rebecca White nominated Hickey as Speaker, in competition with the Liberal Party's preferred candidate, Rene Hidding. Hickey was elected Speaker with the support of Labor and the Greens. She immediately distanced herself from the Liberal Party, revealing she would vote independently on government bills, although she said she would "always support the Liberal Government" on confidence and supply. In some instances, Hickey has deprived the Liberal Party of its 13-12 majority in the Assembly.