Tea Gardens Ambulance officer Jim Arneman will contest the seat of Paterson for the Labor Party in this year's Federal election.
Mr Arneman, who has lived in the electorate for the past 12 years, was officially endorsed as the Labor Party candidate for the seat earlier this month and said he was looking forward to the challenge.
"It's an exciting time," he said.
"Under Kevin Rudd the Labor Party has a new leader with fresh ideas that will take us into the next 10 years.
"I can see a new form of Federalism developing under the leadership of Mr Rudd where the boundaries and possibilities are endless."
Earlier this year Mr Arneman was narrowly defeated by NSW MP Craig Baumann in the closely contested State seat of Port Stephens.
He said the narrow loss had prompted him to put his hand up for Paterson.
"We lost that seat by just 68 votes and it's now the most marginal seat in NSW," he said.
"Anyone would be disappointed to lose under those circumstances but I was extremely proud of the effort our team displayed in the limited campaign time we had.
"Following that I simply wanted a break but I was approached by a number of members of the community who felt I still had a lot to offer and with the contacts I'd built up in the Port Stephens campaign, a Federal challenge was the logical next step."
Mr Arneman will have to oust incumbent Liberal Party MP Bob Baldwin if he is to be successful in winning the seat.
Mr Baldwin has held the seat for the past eight years and previous to that had fought a long running battle with former Labor Party MP Bob Horne.
"Of course it will be a tough fight," Mr Arneman said.
"Bob Baldwin is an experienced and clever politician and I expect him to pull out all stops to defend the seat.
"But no-one has ownership of a seat, you have to perform and the government is becoming stale, they're lacking fresh ideas."
In contrast, Mr Arneman said the opposition Labor Party was brimming with new ideas.
"We're in the middle of a golden period in mining," he said.
"We should be capitalising on the mining boom and its benefits.
"Bob Baldwin and the Liberal Party dropped the ball on that one, they had a golden opportunity to consolidate their position and they failed to capitalise."
Mr Arneman said his work as an Ambulance officer had stood him in good stead as to the wants and needs of the general public, particularly with regard to health services.
"I've been an Ambulance officer for 22 years in metro, regional, rural and remote settings," he said.
"I've got a good feeling for the community and I'm very passionate about primary health care in particular."
"One of the things I will be focusing on is that appropriate services are provided in a timely fashion when they are needed. The blame game has been going on too long."
Mr Arneman said he would be a stern advocate for the Tea Gardens Hawks Nest region and would continue to fight for the dual communities.
"There are impediments to service provisions in Tea Gardens Hawks Nest, no doubt about it," he said.
"Local people don't care who provides them, but they do expect them to be provided. I will work in concert with the State Government to ensure better health services and roads for the people of this area."
Industrial relations are another issue close to Mr Arneman's heart.
"So many families and young people have come to me and said they are being treated unfairly.
"We've lost fairness and balance under the current government and unfortunately Mr Baldwin's been part of that."
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