Nat Cook


Natalie Fleur Cook is an Australian Labor Party politician and anti-violence campaigner. She became an anti-violence campaigner after the death of her son in a one-punch attack in 2008.
Cook entered the South Australian House of Assembly as the member for Fisher after winning the 2014 by-election, held after former-member Bob Such died in office. Cook was elected with a majority of 0.02%, a victory margin of nine votes. From September 2017 until Labor's loss at the 2018 state election, Cook was the Parliamentary Secretary for Housing and Urban Development. Since the 2018 election she has been the Labor member for Hurtle Vale and was appointed as the Shadow Minister for Human Services in the Labor Opposition.

Anti-violence activism

In 2008 Cook's 17-year-old son Sam Davis was killed in a one-punch attack at a party. Soon after Cook and her partner, Neil Davis, founded the Sammy D Foundation, which runs school programs to spread an anti-violence message and provide positive role models to disadvantaged youth. Cook stood down from the board of the Sammy D Foundation after she was elected to Parliament.

Political career

On 20 October 2014 Cook was pre-selected as the Labor Party candidate for the seat of Fisher in the 2014 Fisher by-election, following the death of incumbent member Bob Such. Cook won the by-election by nine votes from a 7.3 percent two-party swing, resulting in the Weatherill Labor Government changing from minority to majority government. On a 0.02 percent margin it was the most marginal seat in parliament.
A redistribution of electoral boundaries occurs following each South Australian general election and it was decided in 2016 that the electoral division of Fisher would be abolished. Its electors were divided between the seats of Davenport, Heysen, Hurtle Vale, and Waite, with Hurtle Vale designated as Fisher's successor by the South Australian Electoral Districts Boundaries Commission. Cook successfully contested the 2018 general election in Hurtle Vale, becoming its first representative. Despite Labor losing government, Cook received a swing towards her of 3.6% in two-party preferred terms, taking 55.3% of the two-party preferred vote.