Federal Labor candidate for Curtin Dr Viktor Ko refused to say if he will quit as Perth city councillor

The new federal Labor candidate for the hotly contested seat of Curtin has refused to say if he will stand down from his role as a City of Perth councillor. Dr Viktor Ko, a former surgical registrar who retrained as a general practitioner when COVID hit, kicked off his campaign on Sunday spruiking about his commitment to Medicare and his belief those in the blue-ribbon seat had a chance to vote red but he would not clarify if he would give up his role in local government. In the months before the WA election, WA Labor called on the now elected member for Churchlands, Basil Zempilas, to stand down as Perth Lord Mayor accusing him of campaigning at the expense of City of Perth ratepayers. Dr Ko’s term at the City of Perth is due to end in October but will spend the next two months pounding the pavement in the Curtin electorate in a bid to win votes for Labor. When asked by The West Australian, if he should resign from his role as a councillor given his focus will be on the federal election, Dr Ko said: “At the moment, I’m deliberating. I’ll leave it at that.” He also downplayed a suggestion he had left his run for the seat too late or that he was fighting a losing battle. “We’re on the eve of the election, and I’m still happy to put my hand up, and I don’t think this is a losing battle,” he said. “I still think there’s still a chance to fight.” The Liberal Party is desperate to win back the seat from incumbent independent MP, Kate Chaney, who snatched the blue-ribbon seat from Celia Hammond in 2022. Former Uber boss Tom White is hoping he will win it back for the Libs, with some pollsters suggesting he could. Curtin is seen as a must-win for the Liberals to have a chance at majority government or having a stronger hand in a hung parliament.