Josh Frydenberg eyes a return to politics after giving up his Melbourne seat in humiliating defeat

Former federal treasurer Josh Frydenberg is believed to be seriously considering running again for his old Melbourne seat of Kooyong in the election due in May 2025.

Mr Frydenberg, 52, lost the blue ribbon seat to Monique Ryan in the 2022 election - one of a series of formerly safe Liberal seats lost to so-called Teal candidates. 

Two months after losing, he joined investment banker Goldman Sachs as a senior regional adviser for the Asia Pacific region, based in its Melbourne office. 

In September, Mr Frydenberg said he was not interested in running for again and instead took a promotion to chairman of Goldman Sachs Australia and New Zealand.

But the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7 led to him contacting several Australian political leaders about anti-Semitic protests. 

That, in turn, led to some Jewish community and Liberal party leaders asking him to reconsider his decision not to run again, the Sunday Telegraph reported. 

Mr Frydenberg was also reportedly shown an internal Liberal party poll showing that he could win the seat back off Dr Ryan if he challenged her, and that he was more likely to be able to do so than any other Liberal candidate. 

A Liberal MP said the former treasurer had been 'kicking the tyres' about running again and that 'He's definitely been up and about lately.'

One of the reasons Dr Ryan could be vulnerable is due to the high profile court case taken against her by her former adviser Sally Rugg. 

Ms Rugg claimed the MP breached general protections under the Fair Work Act and was awarded almost $100,000 in an out-of-court settlement in April.

Another reason the seat could be in play is because of the declining fortunes of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Labor government. 

In the latest Newspoll Labor's vote fell four points to 31 per cent in just three weeks, while the Coalition's rose a point to 38 per cent – its highest support since the election in May 2022. 

Mr Albanese's personal approval rating, which fell two points to 40 per cent, is now level with Liberal leader Peter Dutton. 

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Mr Frydenberg seeking comment.