Rex Patrick

Rex Lyall Patrick (born 8 May 1967) is an Australian politician who served as a Senator for South Australia from November 2017 until June 2022. He was appointed to the Senate to fill a casual vacancy caused by the resignation of Nick Xenophon. He joined the Senate as member of the Centre Alliance party, though in August 2020 he left the party and became an independent. He created the Rex Patrick Team party in January 2021 and sat in parliament as its only member for the duration of his term. Before entering politics, Patrick was a businessman and senior business executive officer, as well as a submariner in the Royal Australian Navy. Early life Patrick was born in New Zealand and moved to South Australia as a child. He attended school in Whyalla then joined the Royal Australian Navy. Early career Patrick served in the Royal Australian Navy from 1983 to 1994. He trained as an electronic technician and volunteered for submarine service. He served on several Oberon-class submarines before being selected and posted as a member of the trials crew of the first Collins-class submarine at Osborne in Adelaide. From 1995 to 2008, Patrick worked for Sonartech Atlas as a project manager. The company was focused on the design and development of sonar systems.