You were championing quotas (without articulating such) because you didn't make any reference to the woman being better suited to the role other than that she was more woman than the man was, and would increase the gender balance in the Liberal Party. That's gender quotas Scott, whether you like it or not. You can ask 'why wouldn't she be a better candidate?', but the vote result has given you a resounding outcome that she wouldn't. That's democracy.
And, while I can sympathise with your position on gender balance, you can't deny that the electorate has by majority either not given a shit about it for several decades, or figured it to be further down their list of priorities than it is for you personally. That is also democracy, and a 'strategy' (or at least characteristic) that has been carried to a great many nearly-consecutive victories since the 1990's.
