Gippsland by-election part 3

With the announcement that the by-election will be held at the end of June, the campaigning has stepped up a notch.

One of the most notable things about this campaign has been what the mainstream media has (or hasn’t) been saying about the campaign. Most commentators have signalled they think the Nationals will retain the seat despite the efforts of the Liberals. And most commentators have determined that the by-election will be a 3 horse race between the Nationals, Liberals and ALP; no-one has mentioned the Greens as an option for voters. At least the local newspapers have identified each candidate standing, along with the local stations especially goold old Aunty.

But what has been forgotten in the mad rush to make any kind of commentary is that by-elections are funny things. These aren’t like your average election, they are much more involved and a lot more focussed.

And the Gippsland by-election will be no exception.

The Nationals and the Liberals have essentially declared war on each other for this seat. While the Liberals’ votes will undoubtedly go to the Nationals and vice-versa, the fact that the Liberals have put forward a candidate shows how little the respect the junior partner in the Coalition receives. It also shows that the Liberals believe that the Nationals have become very vulnerable in this seat and need to be there to ensure a ‘conservative’ party wins the seat.

The ALP has released their own polling indicating they don’t expect to win the seat away from the Nationals. And the Greens continue to plug along pointing out the policy directions needed rather than focussing on the roads like the Liberals have.

But being a by-election it means strange things happen like more localized issues become a lot more prevalent. There are a number of opportunities to highlight significant failings like the health system through the seat, the lack of infrastructure development, the drought and of course climate change given the high agricultural reliance of the seat. It should come as no surprise that the the ALP, Liberals and Nationals are touting their particular positions on doing something about the roads, giving more to the coal industry and ensuring that the farmers are shielded from those damn climate change campaigners.

And as this being a ‘test’ of Nelson’s leadership, the voters of Gippsland have a tremendous opportunity when they go to the polls at the end of June. Rather than going with the same old policies, and same old ideas, the voters in the federal seat of Gippsland have an opportunity to vote for change, fresh ideas and new policies.

By-elections are strange things.

See the first post and the second post