Engineering manager and Wodonga local, Steve Martin has been endorsed as the Liberal Party’s candidate for Benambra at the 2026 state election.

The former 2019 Liberal Indi candidate joins Jess Wilson’s next generation Liberal team for the upcoming state election.

He will run for the seat representing the party in place of Bill Tilley, who announced in March 2024 he would not be contesting Benambra again after nearly 20 years as MP.

Mr Martin, his wife Annabel and their four children have called Wodonga home for the past 11 years.

A charted civil engineer, Mr Martin has worked on a range of major infrastructure projects in Sydney and Melbourne.

He is currently engineering manager at property development company Nordcon Land and has previously worked for Mars Petcare and Seeley International.

Mr Martin's priorities for the upcoming state election are to ease const-of-living pressures, improve local health services and increase investment to fix the crumbling regional roads.

“Labor is not listening to the needs of our community,” he said.

“I will fight for better and safer roads, easing the cost-of-living, better housing affordability and improved access to health services.

“We live in a beautiful part of the world with an incredible community but we are being treated like Melbourne’s poor cousins.”