More than five years after their scandalous affair was exposed, former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce, 56, is set to marry his former political adviser turned mistress, Vikki Campion, 38.
The couple, who have two sons, Sebastian and Thomas, will tie the knot in a ‘bush bash’ wedding in Walcha, NSW, on November 12, but there are some glaring omissions from the guest list.
Mr Joyce has four daughters from his first marriage to Natalie, but the Daily Telegraph reported that just one of them is understood to be attending the wedding.
It’s not clear which of Julia, Caroline, Odette and Bridgette is expected to be at the wedding, however it is unlikely to be Odette, who once posted a picture of her mum and siblings on Instagram with the caption: ‘The real Joyce family #whosbarnaby’
Sebastian and Thomas are expected to play a special role in the wedding day.
Former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce (pictured left) is set to marry his much younger former political adviser turned mistress, Vikki Campion (pictured right)
Mr Joyce is pictured with his former wife Natalie and their four daughters, Julia, Caroline, Odette, and Bridgette
Mrs Joyce was said to have been blindsided by her then husband’s affair, which news of emerged in February 2018 when Ms Campion was two months away from giving birth to Sebastian.
When the couple announced their engagement in January 2022, Mr Joyce said his family’s reaction was as ‘one would have expected’ and not everyone was pleased.
‘Some are happy and some are understandably not as happy,’ Mr Joyce said at the time.
He proposed with a parti sapphire ring, a stone popular in his northern NSW electorate of New England.
‘Rather than being down on one knee (to propose) I ended up being down on two. I was saying my prayers,’ he said.
Ms Campion said yes, and after delays due to the pandemic, the couple are set to get married at a secret location – suspected to be one of Mr Joyce’s properties – next month.
Barnaby Joyce and Vikki Campion are pictured with their eldest son Sebastian
Barnaby’s daughter Odette posted this picture of her mum and siblings on Instagram with the caption: ‘The real Joyce family #whosbarnaby’
Their close friends and National Party colleagues have been invited to attend the wedding, which starts at 11am, and the celebration afterwards.
Guests are encouraged to arrive in utes or 4WDs, roll out their swags and party long into the night.
‘It’s very much Barnaby getting back to his country roots,’ one guest said.
‘The naysayers said they wouldn’t get to this point but this is two people in love and we can’t wait to celebrate.’
While many guests are expected to stay overnight and sleep in their vehicles or in tents, there will also be a bus to take less hardy souls to a nearby country hotel.
When his affair was exposed in early 2018, Mr Joyce resigned as deputy prime minister and Nationals leader.
The then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull slammed Joyce for what he called a ‘shocking error of judgement’.
It led to Mr Turnbull introducing a so-called ‘bonk ban’ on coalition MPs to stop them having sex with their ministerial staff.
Mr Joyce and Ms Campion are pictured with their sons Thomas and Sebastian
Vikki Campion and Barnaby Joyce, who are getting married in November, are pictured with their son Thomas
The exact location for the wedding of Barnaby Joyce (left) and Vikki Campion (right) is being kept secret
At the time, though, Ms Campion said the ban ‘doesn’t protect anyone’.
She said loopholes would allow ministers to sleep with other junior staff they did not directly employ regardless of their position.
Ms Campion also said that MPs, rather than ministers, were still allowed to have sex with their own electorate staff, other ministers’ staff, opposition members’ staff, maintenance staff and senate staff under the ban.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Mr Joyce for comment.
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