Why Gold Coast could be new Greens hot spot
THE Greens say they are preparing for the Gold Coast to become a new hot spot for support as they announce a number of candidates to stand in the October State Government election.
The announcement of multiple party candidates across the city has boosted the stocks of sitting Gaven Labor MP Meaghan Scanlon.
Ms Scanlon won Gaven with a margin of just 3.5 per cent, beating then LNP MP Sid Cramp on a two-party preferred basis by 378 votes.
Ultimately, it was the Greens preferences – with Gaven candidate Sally Spain, who will stand again in October – that got Labor across the line.
Ms Spain received 10.8 per cent of the vote with a positive swing of 4.7 per cent.
Political analysts say the decision to stand against Ms Spain will prove a boost to Ms Scanlon.
The Greens will stand candidates in six of the 10 Gold Coast electorates. Party strategists are hopeful of a strong swing towards the party due to post-COVID disenchantment with the LNP and Labor.
Experienced campaigners suggested during the Currumbin
by-election this year that Labor could get as much as 70 per cent of preferences from the Greens.
Asked whether she was concerned about standing against the Greens, LNP and One Nation candidates, Ms Scanlon said: “I never take my seat for granted.
“Election day is the deciding factor of whether you’ve done your job properly or not so I continue to work hard for the interests of everyone in my community,” she said.
Ms Spain was also asked whether she was concerned about the Greens becoming a deciding force in the Gaven result.
“The Greens are standing for Greens policies. (The LNP and One Nation candidates) don’t really concern us. We have fully costed Greens policies,” she said.
Among the wave of new Greens faces is Burleigh candidate Rachel Mebberson.
New Currumbin candidate Peter Burgoyne stood in Burleigh at the 2017 election, winning 16.1 per cent of the vote with a 5.2 per cent swing in favour of the party on previous years.
Ms Mebberson, a Burleigh local working two jobs during the campaign, said she had become “disillusioned with politics” herself before
stepping up to campaign.
“I don’t really feel like my values are represented in parliament, which is why I’m standing to say, ‘I think we can do things different, I think there’s a better way’,” she said.
The Greens may be counting on a swing away from the major parties in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, according to Mudgeeraba candidate Scott Turner.
Mr Turner, who also ran in Division 12 at the Gold Coast City Council elections this year, said the party was hoping to build on momentum from the previous state election.
“In 2017 we did get a swing towards us, which was good because it had been pretty well flat before that,” he said.
“The sentiment is out there, particularly with the coronavirus disruption, that people have realised it is possible to do things differently.
“It’s about moving beyond the idea that we’re a singleissue party and connecting with people who are disillusioned with the major parties.”