Of the candidates running in Flinders Susan Beveridge, better known as Susie, is probably one of the lesser known independents.

But even though she is running against the high profile independent Julia Banks and Greg Hunt for the Liberal Party, Ms Beveridge has lived in the Mornington Peninsula community for 42 years and says she has played an active role in championing causes for it.

“I’m the underdog in a way – so many people have said I’m glad you’re back Susie,” Ms Beveridge said.

The candidate has been involved in a number of environmental protests, notably against the Channel Deepening of Port Phillip Bay, and said even if she doesn’t get elected she wants to empower her community to question those who are elected to serve them.

“I still want to teach people how to lobby their parliamentarians,” she said.

In 2018 Ms Beveridge opened her own community space called Beach’d in Capel Sound.

The space feels like a culmination of her academic and work history.

“It’s a space that just started with a feeling,” the candidate said.

“I saw this as a meeting place where people could come to learn and exchange ideas, whether it be about nutritional science the political landscape, constitutional issues, anything really,” she said.

In her meeting space, Susie spoke about her life and how she found herself running as a candidate in the 2019 Federal election.

After deciding university wasn’t for her, Ms Beveridge dropped out after two years and said she “got a real job” as an artist at the Gazette in Rosebud.

Following her time at the Gazette, Ms Beveridge worked as a tradesman painting houses mostly around Mt Eliza.

Ms Beveridge also worked as an artist, a freelancer, an environmental activist, a ride-share driver, an SES volunteer and served three years on Council at the Mornington Peninsula from 2007 – 2010.

Of her time on Council the candidate said she loved being in the community and getting things done.

“I love … helping people in a really proactive way.  I like seeing things get built and fixed,” she said.

Ms Beveridge’s says her campaign is being run on “transparency and integrity” and is raising money via a gofundme page.

Along with Julia Banks, Greg Hunt, Nathan Leslie and Joshua Sinclair, Ms Beveridge spoke at a ‘Meet your Candidates’ event on April 17 at Dromana Community Hall.

Of the top five questions raised, Ms Beveridge spoke about three that she has lived experience with and will campaign on.

On the National Disability Insurance Scheme the candidate said for people in need the system does not work.

“The NDIS is a prohibitively difficult system to deal with. I feel that it’s a system that favours providers and bureaucrats,” Ms Beveridge said.

On the environment, the candidate said she became passionate about preventing channel deepening in Port Phillip Bay in 2004.

Today, Ms Beveridge is concerned about development on the coast.

“People come to the Peninsula because it’s beautiful and you’ve got this 70/30 split between the green wedge zone and urban growth.”

“You’ve got beautiful views and environments and people come here because it’s an escape,” she said.

Ms Beveridge also believes that housing affordability is a difficult issue in the bay area.

“We live in a coastal holiday area,” Ms Beveridge said.

“It’s not an extension of Melbourne, it’s a place where a lot of people want to come and stay and they’re happy to pay a premium for accommodation,” she said.

But on the other hand, Ms Beveridge said it’s more difficult for those who need to live in public housing because there aren’t many affordable options and public transport is scarce.

“I think we need a philanthropic model. We should look at denser housing within walking distance of amenities.  So more apartments over shops, they should be low level – maybe three stories in Central Rosebud,” she said.

Susie Beveridge has also worked through some hardships in her life, including physical injury and as a survivor of domestic violence. Ms Beveridge believes these experiences led her to run in the 2019 Federal election.

“Running as a candidate, I’ve got a lot of lived in experience and I’m not ashamed to talk about these things because if it helps somebody else going through the same crap that I did, well then it’s worth it.”

Ms Beveridge says she respects her opponents, but will leave it to the voters to decide who they think should represent them in the Flinders Electorate.

“I feel that unless you live in your community; you know the people, you’ve played in it, you’ve walked in it, rubbed shoulders with all walks of life in the community – you don’t know what makes it tick honestly.”