Napthine: from rural vet to Vic premier
A shock resignation made Denis Napthine the Victorian premier, but the ballot box will determine if he gets to keep the job.
The 62-year-old is campaigning to stay in the office he was handed when Ted Baillieu surprised Victorians by resigning in March 2013.
Dr Napthine stepped into a hung parliament with rogue former Liberal Geoff Shaw calling the shots.
While dealing with an increasingly unpredictable Mr Shaw, Dr Napthine has pushed through his pet project: the East West Link stage one, a tunnel connecting two of Melbourne's freeways.
Dr Napthine, born and raised in Geelong, went to school in Winchelsea before going to the University of Melbourne to study veterinary science.
He worked as a veterinarian with the Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in regional Victoria, where he became involved with the Liberal Party.
In 1984, he became a state council representative and the following year became Hamilton branch president until 1988, when he was elected as the member for Portland.
In 1992, when Jeff Kennett was elected to premier, Dr Napthine was appointed parliamentary secretary to the health minister.
From there, he rose through the ranks, being promoted to youth and community services minister and then treasurer.
His stint as treasurer was short lived after the Kennett government unexpectedly lost the 1999 election.
The resignation of Mr Kennett paved the way for Dr Napthine's appointment to the Liberal leader's role.
As the 2002 election loomed, Dr Napthine was overthrown by Robert Doyle, Melbourne's present lord mayor, amid claims the party faced oblivion at the polls under his leadership.
In that election, he narrowly won the newly created seat of South West Coast, but m it a safe Liberal seat in 2006 and 2010.
Dr Napthine served as shadow minister in various portfolios until the coalition won the 2010 election under Mr Baillieu.
Since becoming premier, he has worked to throw off the "do nothing" tag the opposition successfully hung on his predecessor's leadership.
Dr Napthine moved to free up what Labor described as "paralysis" in the premier's office, ticked off major projects and tied up industrial agreements with unions.
"The last election, the coalition said `we're going to fix the problems and build for the future'," Dr Napthine said before issuing the election writs.
"That's exactly what we've been doing."
It will be up to voters to decide if Dr Napthine's record of his 18 months in charge have been enough to offer him another four years.
