Cheryl Kernot

Cheryl Kernot
5th Leader of the Australian Democrats
In office
23 April 1993 – 15 October 1997
DeputyMeg Lees
Preceded byJohn Coulter
Succeeded byMeg Lees
Senator for Queensland
In office
1 July 1990 – 15 October 1997
Preceded byMichael Macklin
Succeeded byAndrew Bartlett
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Dickson
In office
3 October 1998 – 10 November 2001
Preceded byTony Smith
Succeeded byPeter Dutton
Personal details
Born
Cheryl Zena Paton

(1948-12-05) 5 December 1948 (age 75)
Maitland, New South Wales, Australia
Political partyIndependent (after 2001)
Other political
affiliations
Democrat (until 1997)
Labor (1997–2001)
Spouses
Philip Young
(m. 1972; div. 1975)
Gavin Kernot
(m. 1981; div. 2002)
Children1
EducationMaitland Girls' High School
Alma materUniversity of Sydney
University of Newcastle
College of Advanced Education
OccupationSchool teacher
(Anglican Church Grammar School)
(Department of Education)
ProfessionAcademic
Politician

Cheryl Zena Kernot (née Paton, formerly Young; born 5 December 1948) is an Australian politician, academic, and political activist. She was a member of the Australian Senate representing Queensland for the Australian Democrats from 1990 to 1997, and the fifth leader of the Australian Democrats from 1993 to 1997. In 1997, she resigned from the Australian Democrats, joined the Australian Labor Party, and won the seat of Dickson at the 1998 federal election. She was defeated at the 2001 federal election. Kernot was an unsuccessful independent candidate to represent New South Wales in the Australian Senate in the 2010 federal election.[1]

  1. ^ "Ms Cheryl Kernot MP". Senators and Members of the Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 5 November 2021.