Veteran candidate rolls with punches
DOZENS of candidates nationwide are running this federal election without hopes of winning and will keep doing so year after year despite countless losses.
Jen Sackley is Far North Queensland’s most politically active candidate, having run four times in the federal election as Independent for Leichhardt in 2004, Independent for Leichhardt in 2010, United Australia Party for Leichhardt in 2019 and Independent for Kennedy in 2022.
Locally, she participated in the Cairns mayoral race in 2020 with the North Queensland State Alliance team, was a candidate for One Nation Party for Cook in 2017 and an Independent for Hinchinbrook in 2020 state elections.
Irrespective of her losses in all her runnings, Ms Sackley said it hadn’t been a deterrent for her to run again.
“I’m not one to give up and walk away,” she said.
“I think you should be involved in a process that will affect every day of your life.”
Ms Sackley said she believed she had gotten better with each election campaign and learnt a great deal.
“I’ve certainly gained a lot of knowledge being in and out of those political parties,” she said. “I still have that drive and that obligation and the knowledge to do the job.”
Ms Sackley said participating in the federal elections numerous times has been a great learning experience and she enjoyed being involved with her constituents.
“One of the reasons I keep running is that I’m truly committed to maintaining our democracy and being politically active,” she said.
This election year, Ms Sackley is confident she’ll win Kennedy if residents in her electorate “stand up”.
“I always believe I can win,” she said.