Erchana Murray-Bartlett, a marathon runner and nutritionist, is entering the race for McPherson, which spans from Burleigh to Coolangatta, where the five-term Liberal MP Karen Andrews is stepping down.

“Local residents are often not politically engaged, enjoying surfing and the lifestyle here, but in reality, politics impacts everyone, especially in a city so prone to climate-related incidents,” Murray-Bartlett shared with 9news.com.au.

Murray-Bartlett said she was happy to be called a teal – but doesn’t use the label herself.

“While there may be agreement on some values, at the end of the day, my accountability is solely to my electorate, and that will guide my voting decisions.”

Climate 200 has backed Murray-Bartlett, as well as several other independent candidates running for Queensland seats, including Nicole Arrowsmith in the neighbouring electorate of Moncrieff, Ellie Smith in Peter Dutton’s seat of Dickson, Suzie Holt in Groom on the Darling Downs, as well as Francis Wiig in Fairfax and Keryn Jones in Fisher, both on the Sunshine Coast.

Murray-Barlett will literally run the entire length of her electorate – all 120 kilometres of it – non-stop tomorrow to raise funds for her campaign.