Jaala Pulford is an Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n politician. She has been an Australian Labor Party

Australian Labor Party

The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...

 member of the Victorian Legislative Council

Victorian Legislative Council

The Victorian Legislative Council, is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Victoria, Australia; the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit in Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Council serves as a house of review, in a similar fashion to...

 since 2006, representing Western Victoria Region.

Pulford grew up in Castlemaine and studied at Bendigo Senior Secondary College

Bendigo Senior Secondary College

Bendigo Senior Secondary College is an Australian state school for Year 11 and Year 12 students in Bendigo, Victoria.There are four state 7-10 colleges in Bendigo - Eaglehawk Secondary College, Bendigo South East Secondary College, Crusoe College and Weeroona College Bendigo...

 and Monash University

Monash University

Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....

, but left in 1994 before completing her arts degree to commence a position as an organiser with the National Union of Workers

National Union of Workers

The National Union of Workers is a large Australian trade union formed in 1989.-History:The National Union of Workers of Australia was formed by a progressive amalgamation of unions from 1989 onwards in a time when all Australian unions were merging, with varying degrees of success...

, which she held up until her election to parliament. She also served in a number of positions within the Labor Party, including junior vice-president of the Victorian branch, member of the state branch administrative committee, and member of the Labor Women's Network national executive.

Pulford entered politics ahead of the 2006 state election

Victorian state election, 2006

An election for the 56th Parliament of Victoria took place on Saturday, 25 November 2006. Just over 3 million Victorians registered to vote elected 88 members to the Legislative Assembly and, for the first time, 40 members to the Legislative Council under a proportional representation system...

, when she won the first position on the Labor ticket for the Western Victoria Region, thus ensuring her election to parliament. Her preselection was criticised as she did not live in the region, but she moved from Melbourne

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

 to Ballarat prior to the election. She was duly elected in November, was promoted to the position of Parliamentary Secretary for Industrial Relations in August 2007 and in January 2010 was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Regional and Rural Development, Industry and Trade.

Pulford is married with two children.