Hypervigilant and isolated, rural female MPs exhausted from fear

Key points

• Regional women in public office say staying safe is exhausting, as they travel long distances on high alert amid escalating threats. Victorian MP Annabelle Cleeland says poor phone reception leaves her safety net unreliable.
• Days after Indi MP Helen Haines was attacked, police charged a man accused of threatening WA MP Hannah Beazley with a homemade weapon. A survey by Women for Election found nine in 10 women in politics had experienced intimidation or abuse.
• Our Watch chief Patty Kinnersly said disrespect towards women was rife.