Mr Fitzgibbon, a former Defence Minister, has held Hunter for Labor since 1996 but announced his retirement last last year, leading to an open contest for the seat.

After the 2019 election saw a large swing towards the Nationals on the back of One Nation preferences, the Labor saw its vote margin reduced to just three percent on a two-party preferred basis for the first time since 1984. After the close result in 2019, the Hunter campaign has drawn attention from national political leaders, with the Nationals and One Nation targeting the seat as a winnable prospect after more than 100 years in Labor's hands.

Concerns about the impacts of climate change and net zero emissions targets have largely dominated the 2022 campaign as candidates have tried to appeal to voters in a seat heavily reliant on the coal mining industry for jobs.

Labor selected former coal miner and five-time Olympian Dan Repacholi as its candidate to succeed Mr Fitzgibbon, with his pitch to Hunter voters focusing on 'same job, same pay' policies for mining worker and improvements to healthcare and childcare access.

Nationals candidate James Thomson, a community relations officer at a Christian school, has focused his campaign on economic diversification and jobs growth in the region, supporting the agricultural industry as well as investments in infrastructure and education.

One Nation candidate Dale McNamara, a Singleton businessman and former coal miner, has campaigned on a pledge to protect coal mining jobs and preventing net zero emissions targets, listing his first priority as economic development and driving down unemployment.

Greens candidate Janet Murray, a former chemical engineer, has campaigned on a plan to reach net zero emissions by 2030 and increasing taxes on large corporations and billionaires to establish a jobs transition fund for coal workers, housing affordability and adding dental coverage to Medicare.

Prominent independent candidate Stuart Bonds, a coal miner and the Hunter candidate for One Nation in 2019, has campaigned against net zero emissions targets and COVID-19 vaccination mandates and has pledged to support the coal mining industry if elected.

The remaining candidates for Hunter include Victoria Davies from the Animal Justice Party, Cathy Townsend from the Informed Medical Options Party, Geoff Passfield from the United Australia Party and Scott Fulvio Laruffa, an independent candidate.

Pre-poll voting began on Monday, May 9, with voting on election day to begin at 8am on Saturday, May 21, and close at 6pm.