Green in Labor’s top spot

LABOR Senate hopeful Nita Green is set to be confirmed as the party’s No. 1 candidate at this weekend’s state conference after blitzing the Left faction’s ballot.

Ms Green won 73 per cent of the combined branch and union vote, securing an easy win over her main rival, North Queenslander Tania Major.

Ms Major secured just 12 per cent of the union vote and about 32 per cent of the branch vote. Ms Green, who will replace retiring Senator Claire Moore, has reportedly pledged to move to Cairns should she be elected.

The result comes after weeks of intense factional infighting, with union powerbrokers in southeast Queensland accused of rigging the ballot at the expense of regionally based candidates. The No. 2 spot is expected to go to the Right’s Chris Ketter.

The final order of Senate candi- dates will be confirmed at the Queensland Labor conference this weekend after the party’s national executive issued a directive to speed up preselections in preparation for the looming federal election.

Earlier this week former Townsville Labor MP Mike Reynolds wrote to the Left faction’s members to express his “white hot anger” at the preselection process.

In the email, seen by the Townsville Bulletin, Mr Reynolds said the internal ballot should have been stopped.

“It is simply unacceptable for a small group in Brisbane to decide who the person should be and ram it through a farcical process,” he said.

“This represents everything the community most detests about political machinations.”

A Labor source told the Bulletin the North Queensland branch members “would not stand for zero representation” with regards to the Senate.