Entering parliament in 1997, Marise Payne has served as Liberal Senator for New South Wales for over 25 years and is the longest serving female Senator in Australia's history.
Marise is Shadow Cabinet Secretary in the Shadow Ministry.
Marise served as Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs between August 2018 and May 2022 and as Minister for Women between May 2019 and May 2022.
Prior to this, Marise served as Minister for Defence – the first woman to hold this federal Cabinet portfolio – from September 2015, during which time she oversaw major developments including the delivery of a Defence White Paper and the creation of a $200 billion defence materiel program. Following the election of the Coalition government in September 2013, Marise served as Minister for Human Services for two years.
After growing up in Sydney and the NSW Southern Highlands, Marise studied at the University of NSW, completing a Bachelor of Arts and Laws.
A member of the Liberal Party since 1982, she was the National Young Liberal Movement's first female President. After serving as a political adviser to some of the most significant figures in Liberal politics of their time, Marise worked in the finance industry.
Away from politics, she is a committed fan of the St George/Illawarra NRL team and the Geelong Cats, an enthusiastic supporter of the arts in Australia, spends as much time as she can in the Southern Highlands and cooks for therapy.
Marise and her partner, the Hon Stuart Ayes MP, live in Mulgoa, at the foot of Australia’s iconic Blue Mountains.
