Media Release
6 December 2009
Speaking at the Greens NSW State Conference today, Greens candidate for Bradfield, Susie Gemmell said that last night's election was good news for the Greens, and the 4.7% swing away from the Liberals on primary votes was hardly something for Tony Abbott fans to crow about.
“I am proud to be a Green today. One in four people gave the Greens their vote, and more than one in three people preferred the Greens to the Liberal party in a by-election in the Liberal heartland,”said Ms Gemmell.
“The 4.7% swing away from the Liberal primary vote would have been much greater if Labor had not been missing in action.
“By-elections typically favour opposition parties, so a 4.7% swing away from the Liberal candidate on primary votes can hardly be considered an endorsement.
“These are our best primary vote results in a by-election where the Greens stepped up to be the second major party because Labor did not field a candidate.
“More than a third of people voted Greens ahead of Liberal in this climate change by-election in a Liberal stronghold seat.
“Kevin Rudd and Tony Abbott would be foolish to ignore the climate change message from this election campaign.
“I want to thank the many thousands of people who voted Greens for the first time, who supported the Greens call for stronger action on climate change.
“Our climate change campaign in Bradfield generated huge interest from all sides of politics.
“The Greens look forward to strengthening support for our stance on climate change in the federal election next year.
“The Greens are part of the political fabric in Australia and climate change will continue to be a priority campaign,” said Ms Gemmell.
More information: Susie Gemmell 0431 458 102