The husband of a prominent Melbourne teal MP has been filmed taking down a sign of a Liberal political rival just weeks before the 2025 federal election.
In a heightening of tensions in a seat vital to the Coalition’s chances of forming government, Monique Ryan’s husband Peter Jordan removed a sign backing her Liberal rival Amelia Hamer.
Mr Jordan also refused several times to say who he was when confronted by a Liberal supporter who filmed the encounter in the Kooyong electorate.
He said he was entitled to take the sign down as it had been erected on public land in the constituency, which was previously held by a Liberal Party heroes Sir Robert Menzies and Josh Frydenberg, before Dr Ryan won it in 2022.
The man followed Mr Jordan down a street with Ms Hamer’s election poster under his arm, repeatedly asking him what he was doing.
‘I’m taking the sign down,’ Mr Jordan said. ‘(Because) it’s on public land’.
The Liberal activist commented that Mr Jordan was wearing a teal shirt, suggesting there was a political rather than legal reason for removing the poster.
‘I’m not acting on behalf of anyone, mate,’ he said. ‘I’m not saying who I am.’
When the man tried to take the sign back from Dr Ryan’s husband, he pulled it back.
‘If it goes back up, it’ll be taken down again,’ he said.
‘It’s an illegally put up sign, anyone can take (it) down because it’s illegal.’
As the video ended, Mr Jordan seemed to have surrendered the poster to the Liberal supporter who was filming him.
Mr Jordan told Daily Mail in a statement he had made an error by taking the sign down.
‘I unreservedly apologise for removing the sign. It was a mistake,’ he said.
‘I believed the sign was illegally placed, but I should have reported my concerns to council.’
Dr Ryan also issued a statement, offering her own apology.
‘I apologise for the removal of the sign. It should not have happened,’ she said.
‘All concerns around signage should be reported to Council.’
The man who filmed the encounter told Sydney Morning Herald he came across Mr Jordan while visiting his parents at Camberwell on Saturday afternoon.
‘I was out the front doing some gardening and I hear some weird grunting noise and I opened up the door and there was a bloke ripping out the sign,’ he said.
‘The sign was on the nature strip, but it’s hard to know where to draw the line in placing it.’
A Liberal party spokesman slammed the footage, claiming it was representative of the teal’s behaviour.
‘The teals preach integrity in public, but then behave like this when they think no one is looking,’ he said.
‘It’s disappointing that we now need to consider how to best keep our property and volunteers safe when Monique and her husband are around.’
Daily Mail contacted Ms Hamer for comment.