She was a member of the shadow ministry from 2013 to 2022, and was elected President of the New South Wales Labor Party in October 2021.

She is now the Minister for Communications in the government of Anthony Albanese following the ALP's victory in the 2022 Australian federal election.

Rowland was a Director of the Western Sydney Area Health Service from 2000 to 2004 and is a former local councillor (Ward 2, 2004–2008) and deputy mayor of Blacktown (2007–2008).

However, her subsequent victory was helped during the campaign by the high profile blunder of the Liberal Party candidate Jaymes Diaz, when he could not state clearly the Coalition's policy on asylum seekers.

She was elevated to the shadow Cabinet in 2016, and maintained her place following Anthony Albanese's election as party leader in 2019.

[7] On 10 September 2024, Albanese and Rowland confirmed that the federal government would introduce legislation to enforce a minimum age for access to social media and other relevant digital platforms.

This was in line with her longstanding position and the national success of the Yes vote, with Rowland declaring: "Personally, a conversation I had with a mother in Seven Hills provided me with an important perspective.