A trailblazing nurse and Yolŋu man from remote Elcho Island has been announced as Labor’s pick to run in the upcoming race for the Northern Territory seat of Mulka.
Yiwarr McGrath, a former NT Young Australian of the Year (AOTY), was preselected by Territory Labor last night to contest the East Arnhem Land seat, vacated by independent Yiŋiya Guyula.
Mr Guyula quit last week after 10 years in parliament, triggering a by-election to be held on September 12.
Mr McGrath was named the NT Young AOTY in 2021 when training to become the first Yolŋu registered nurse.
He grew up in Galiwin'ku on Elcho Island, a remote north-east Arnhem Land community, before moving to Canberra then Darwin for study.
In 2025, Mr McGrath won the NT Health Excellence in Early Career Award for his "exceptional contribution" to Yolŋu-focused patient care as a nurse working for Miwatj Health Aboriginal Organisation.
"It's an honour to have been preselected, and I look forward to campaigning to continue the incredible legacy of Yiŋiya Guyula," he said in a statement.
"Mulka is my home, and I want to fight for it. Healthcare is my profession, and I want to it thrive in our area.
"Nhulunbuy and the remote communities and homelands deserve the same dignity of access to healthcare as any other Territorian.
"It's a short campaign, but I'm ready to get out there and fight to become part of the Labor opposition and hold the divisive CLP government to account."
In its statement, Labor also said during the preselection process, Mr McGrath disclosed that about 16 years ago he was charged with drink driving and lost his license for six months.
The disclosure follows a recent scandal involving the driving record of Labor shadow minister Manuel Brown.
A win in the seat of Mulka would take Labor's minority in NT parliament from five to six, after it also picked up the seat of Nightcliff from the Greens in a by-election earlier this year.
Prior to Mr Guyula's first victory in 2016, Labor had safely held the seat of Nhulunbuy (which was renamed in 2020) since 1980.
Opposition Leader Selena Uibo said Labor would "look to restrengthen those strongholds".
"We also want to show communities and the township of Nhulunbuy that we will back them, we will support them, and with a strong candidate with the Mulka seat, they will be represented in the best possible way in territory parliament," she said.
"We do not want to see divisive politics play out in an important seat like Mulka, which is going through a huge transition process when it comes to the Nhulunbuy township and the [looming] exit of the Rio Tinto mine."
As well as the town of Nhulunbuy and the Gove Peninsula, the electorate comprises large remote Yolŋu communities including Mr Guyula's home of Milingimbi and Galiwin'ku.
The Country Liberal Party (CLP) said it was open to fielding a candidate for the seat, which it has not won since the 1970s, but would further advise after nominations closed on Thursday.
