Senator Nampijinpa Price – Profile

You wouldn’t know it based on her incredible popularity and political success today, but Senator Jacinta Price came from very humble beginnings. Senator Price has become an inspirational figure for hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Australians. To understand how Senator Price became the influential political figure she is today, we need to go back and examine her career and life to date.

Early Life

Jacinta Price was born on May 12, 1981, in Darwin. Her mother, Bess Price, was already active in Indigenous community activism and politics.

Jacinta spent most of her childhood growing up in Alice Springs. She travelled widely with her family, camping out in the bush, and had visited every state in Australia by the time she was seven years old. As a child, Jacinta learned to play the violin and joined several local hip-hop groups by the time she was 15. In 2013, Jacinta released her own music album, Dry River , which paid homage to her life growing up in regional Australia.

But there were challenges. From an early age, Jacinta was exposed to domestic violence and the harsh economic conditions faced by Indigenous people living in remote areas. Her early life experiences left her determined to change things.

Entering Politics

Jacinta Price was elected to the Alice Springs Council in October 2015 and was sworn in by her mother. During her time on the council, Price focused on domestic violence, youth crime and delinquency, and providing recreational and cultural opportunities. She became Deputy Mayor of Alice Springs in September 2020 and served until August 2021.

Jacinta stood as the Country Liberal Party (CLP) candidate for the Division of Lingiari at the 2019 federal election, securing 44.5% of the two-party-preferred vote. Even though she was unsuccessful, Jacinta achieved a 5% swing to the CLP. It should be noted that this stands in contrast to the overall result of the 2019 federal election, which saw a swing against the Coalition of -0.60%

2022 Election

Jacinta didn’t let her unsuccessful 2019 run deter her. She ran in the 2021 preselection for the CLP Senate ticket, where she successfully defeated sitting Senator Sam McMahon, and went on to be elected as a Senator for the Northern Territory in the 2022 federal election.

In her maiden speech, Senator Price shared personal anecdotes illustrating how the government has failed Indigenous Australians and their communities. She made an impassioned plea for law and order to be restored in regional towns and for more to be done to help people dealing with drug and alcohol addictions. Senator Price also criticised welfare dependency and what she called “opportunistic collectivism” as major obstacles to progress in regional communities. She argued passionately that the best way to lift people out of poverty is to allow for free enterprise in a “progressive commercial environment.”

During her first three years in Parliament, Senator Price advocated for numerous causes, including reforms to restore law and order in rural communities, expanding economic opportunities in regional areas, launching a royal commission into child abuse, and reducing people’s reliance on government support.

Voice Referendum

Senator Price was one of the most prominent public figures to campaign against the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum in 2023.

Alongside Warren Mundine, Senator Price argued that the Voice to Parliament would enshrine racial discrimination in the Australian Constitution. The referendum was defeated, with every state and territory voting “No” except the ACT.

2025 Election to Present

In the lead-up to the 2025 federal election, Senator Price was given the additional portfolio of Shadow Minister for Government Efficiency. The role of this portfolio was to identify and eliminate wasteful government spending—something Senator Price is deeply passionate about.

In September, during a media interview, the topic of mass immigration arose. Senator Price referenced polling by the RedBridge Group, which found that in certain electorates, people with Indian ancestry voted Labor upwards of 80% of the time. Some in the media and political space took this as a prejudiced remark against people of Indian descent, and Senator Price was immediately met with calls to retract her comments. While Senator Price apologised for her “clumsy” wording about the voting patterns of certain immigrant groups, she refused to apologise for expressing concerns about mass immigration in general.

Despite considerable pressure from several colleagues, including federal leader Sussan Ley, Senator Price refused to back down from her beliefs. As a result, Sussan Ley removed her from the shadow cabinet on September 10.

Since then, Senator Price has continued to advocate for the causes that are important to her. These include energy affordability, improving living conditions for people in remote Indigenous communities, and public service reform.

Senator Price remains one of the most recognisable and popular politicians in the country, despite never having served as a cabinet minister. Her story shows that standing by one’s convictions can take you far in both public and private life.