Background
Peta Credlin was born to Len and Brenda Credlin in the small Victorian country town of Wycheproof.
Peta Credlin was born to Len and Brenda Credlin in the small Victorian country town of Wycheproof.
Her family moved closer to Geelong, where she attended Sacred Heart College. She graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Melbourne, before applying for a job as a political staffer with Liberal Senator Kay Patterson in 1999.
After working for several years on Patterson"s staff, Credlin moved to become an advisor to Senator Richard Alston, the Minister for Communications in the Howard Government. She then left politics, and worked for three years as public relations manager for Racing Victoria. When the Howard Government was defeated at the 2007 federal election, Credlin moved to Sydney to work at the Jockey Club until she was asked by Brendan Nelson, who had been elected federal Liberal leader and Leader of the Opposition, to join his staff
When Turnbull himself was challenged and defeated by Tony Abbott in December 2009, Credlin joined Abbott"s staff
She continued in that role until the Liberal Party leadership ballot of 14 September 2015, in which Abbott was defeated and replaced as leader by Malcolm Turnbull.
Tired of the commute between Melbourne and Canberra, where her husband Brian Loughnane was based, Credlin returned to her career as a political staffer, working for senators Robert Hill and Helen Coonan. When Malcolm Turnbull challenged Nelson for the party leadership, Nelson counselled her to join Turnbull"s team and she was appointed his chief of staff, although she was demoted to deputy during this tenure.