Melbourne councillor Stephen Mayne is challenging former Howard and Abbott minister Kevin Andrews at the ballot box, promising to tackle the "capital C conservative" by running as a "true liberal" at the election.
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Cr Mayne, a serial candidate, is pitching himself as a Hamer Liberal candidate, attacking Mr Andrews' socially conservative views, which he believes are out of step with modern attitudes.
"He is a 1950s capital C conservative. These dinosaurs can hide in the Senate in smaller states but Kevin Andrews shouldn't be doing this in Hamer Liberal territory in progressive Melbourne," Cr Mayne told Fairfax Media.
The councillor's bold bid for the seat came as the Victorian Liberal Party was rocked by allegations of ethnic branch stacking in Mr Andrews' seat, with one of the former defence minister's staff resigning after being accused of orchestrating stacks in the Macedonian community.
The administrative committee of the Liberal party this week discussed allegations of branch stacking in Menzies, which also encompasses state Opposition Leader Matthew Guy's seat of Bulleen.
At least 14 memberships have been cancelled by party officials after complaints that elderly people, understood to be from the Macedonian community, were signed up without consent – one person is understood to be an ALP supporter.
One source described it as "an amateur attempt to stack", while others are disappointed by more party infighting on the eve of the federal election.
Cr Mayne, a fierce anti-pokies campaign and shareholder advocate, is calling on Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to implement meaningful campaign financing and donations reform.
Mr Andrews has held the seat since 1991 and has a healthy 14.4 per cent margin in the seat, which includes Warrandyte, Doncaster and Bulleen.
"I'm running as a pro-Turnbull liberal against a far-right conservative. The people of Menzies want Turnbull to succeed, Kevin doesn't want him to," Cr Mayne said.
This will be his third attempt at federal election. He has run four times in state politics, most recently in the Melbourne by-election in 2012.
Cr Mayne, a former young Liberal and staffer to Premier Jeff Kennett, says Mr Andrews has delivered nothing for the seat and is not a true local – Cr Mayne grew up and lives in Templestowe.
Critics have also attacked Mr Andrews' links to the gaming industry. Last year Fairfax revealed that the gambling lobby had donated tens of thousands of dollars to Mr Andrews' campaign, while he was formulating the Coalition's gambling policies.
On branch stacking, Mr Andrews office said it was a matter for the Victorian Liberal party.
