Dave Sharma was elected to the Australian Parliament for the seat of Wentworth, in eastern Sydney, in May 2019 as a candidate of the Liberal Party.
Prior to politics, Mr Sharma enjoyed an extensive and distinguished career as an Australian diplomat, with service in the Middle East, Asia-Pacific and the US. He served with the Australian-led peacekeeping force in Bougainville in 2000, for which he was awarded the Australian Service Medal. From 2001 to 2003, Mr Sharma was stationed in Papua New Guinea, helping to negotiate an end to the civil war in Bougainville. On his return to Australia, he became the legal and multilateral advisor to Foreign Minister Alexander Downer.
From 2006 to 2009, Mr Sharma was the political counsellor at the Australian Embassy in Washington DC, where he worked to coordinate and align policies with the US Administration on important challenges in East Asia and the Middle East. From 2010 to 2012, he headed the international division in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet in Canberra, helping spearhead the Prime Minister’s diplomatic effort across the breadth of Australian interests. From 2013 to 2017, he was Australia’s Ambassador to Israel, helping strengthen the relationship in the defence and technology sectors and ensuring strong Australian support for Israel in international forums.
Mr Sharm joined the private sector following his return from Israel, working in advisory roles for a number of Australian and Israeli tech companies. He chaired Israeli technology company Shekel Brainweigh for its successful IPO on the Australian stock exchange.
