In 2022, Dai Le delivered her first speech to Parliament as the newly elected independent member for the Federal seat of Fowler in Western Sydney.
Wearing a traditional Vietnamese dress emblazoned with the Australian Flag, Dai’s speech garnered a raucous response from 250 of her supporters crowding the public gallery that day. They had arrived from Sydney on five buses to see her speak.
Before her role in Canberra, Dai had a long career in local politics, which began when she decided to work to build a proper car park and decent public toilets in Cabramatta. Dai’s zeal to get things done began in her upbringing.
Dai’s family arrived in Australia from Vietnam when she was a small child, fleeing Saigon by boat with her mother and two sisters.
Two harrowing ocean voyages, years in refugee camps, and the mystery of what happened to her father shaped Dai’s personality at a young age.