Bisma Asif
Bisma Asif is an Australian politician. She represents Sandgate in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland. Asif is the first Muslim to be elected to the Parliament of Queensland.
Early life
Bisma Asif was born in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan and moved to Sydney with her family in 2004.She received a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Queensland. Asif has said that she became interested in politics and involved in the Labor Party at university, and worked on a campaign for former MP Wayne Swan.
Political career
Prior to seeking elected office, Asif served as the president of Young Labor and as an advisor to Anika Wells.Asif was preselected by the Queensland Labor Party as its candidate for Sandgate at the 2024 Queensland state election to succeed the retiring incumbent Stirling Hinchliffe. She was selected amid the requirement that two male Labor MPs would have to retire at the next election to make way for women in order to meet the party's gender quota affirmative action rules. Asif’s preselection occurred in the context of the Australian Labor Party’s gender quota policy, which aims to increase female representation among candidates contesting winnable seats. The policy applies at the candidate preselection stage and does not formally require the retirement or removal of sitting Members of Parliament. While some media commentary has suggested that male MPs may face pressure to retire in order to facilitate compliance with gender targets, this reflects internal party dynamics rather than an explicit rule mandating such outcomes. Asif was selected through Labor’s established preselection processes, consistent with party procedures.