Blaxland – Australia 2025

Good article featuring some quotes from Ben Raue about the electorate and Ouf’s chances as an independent:

https://amp.theguardian.com/australia-news/2024/oct/22/i-believe-i-can-win-the-immigrant-hoping-to-upset-labor-in-western-sydney-stronghold

Always found Clare to be unimpressive in my dealings with him, even though he has had every advantage afforded to him. Seems the laziest and least ambitious out of the Western Sydney Right faction: Husic, Burke, Rowland, Clare, Bowen and Charlton. Even Sitou has more go.
The member for Kingsford-Smith not setting the world on fire either and could be susceptible to a strong independent challenger as well.

Within the Cumberland Council, the councillor Steve Christou has made starting a culture war about Indigenous Issues like banning Welcome to Country and flags his priority.

Our may actually be within a shot if he doesn’t show any extreme or controversial views the libs may choose to prefernce him and or run dead so he makes the 2cp. If he makes the 2cp and gets lib preferences he will win.

This is my electorate . I have found Jason to be both intelligent and competent and approachable. MR Ouf only just got elected to Cumberland Council.
Steve Christo used to work for a left wing mp.. he decided he wished to be mayor when he couldn’t manage this within the alp he switched. Good thing is he will not be mayor this term. Of interest with the boundary changes this is close to the boundaries of the old Reid when it was a safe alp seat.

@Mick Quinlivan, why is is the Federal Labor margin low in the Merrylands area (with even one voting booth voting for the Libs)?

What I’m curious about is why there isn’t a big minor party in Australia that is economically left-wing but socially right-wing. I mean there’s the DLP but they don’t even exist outside Victoria anymore as far as I know. They aren’t my views, but you’d think that people (especially CALD people) would hold those views in Australia like they do in Europe.

Parties with economically left-wing but socially right-wing views hold seats in a number of European countries, including Germany, Greece, Ireland, Slovakia and many others.

And formerly in the UK too

@Marh Merrylands is near Parramatta so maybe that’s why?

@np the LDP could fit that description. I believe there are others too

Certainly not the LDP, @John. LDP is right-wing libertarian economics. The closest to home party that economically left-wing but socially right-wing is NZ First in New Zealand

@ Nether Portal
Good Question, it depends on what you mean by socially right wing. In Seats like Blaxland will be socially conservative on religious matters (LGBT, Abortion, Euthansia etc). However, i would not classify many poor CALD voters as being blanket social conservatives on other matters for example indigenous issues, nationalism, Hawkish on China etc. Many residents in Blaxland maybe concerned about LGBT issues taught to young children but will not give a damn if Critical Race Theory is taught in schools. I think once of the first conversations we had was on the Parkes thread was about comparing Blaxland to Maranoa to see which one is more socially conservative. Have a thread through your comments then and others on the link below and that may explain a lot.

Recently i mentioned in the Melbourne 2025 thread if Australia had kept the White Australia Policy, Blaxland would have probably voted YES to SSM and the only seats that would have voted no are Maranoa, Kennedy and Groom.

https://www.tallyroom.com.au/archive/aus2022/parkes2022

The LDP is decidedly not economically left wing. I would say the Anglosphere in general has a lacking niche in this aspect, partially thanks to non-PR voting systems, partially thanks to economics being the bigger priority among culturally conservative voters and partially because many European countries NP brings up are former communist economies where there is a large cohort of culturally conservative older voters who are nostalgic for left-wing economic systems.

NZ First is definitely an interesting exception to the rule in the Anglosphere, and it comes in the sole country with PR.

@ Adda
I think maybe KAP is something that fits that description. However, I dont see KAP appealing to a seat like Rankin where there poor ethnic voters.

@marh sry I read that around the wrong way. I though said socially liberal and economically conservative. I believe JLN fits the bill.as well as KAP.. The centre Alliance possibly too.

@adda if they have of kept the white Australia policy we likely wouldn’t even be voting on that.

@ John
I dont think Centre Alliance is socially conservative at all, they are Protectionist as their base is South Australia. Also do you meant if Australia was a more White country then the Libs would have decided not to hold the SSM postal survey?
Brand, Shortland and Port Adelaide are example of white working class areas that voted strongly for SSM?

@nimalan sry that was another error in reading stuff wrong they are socially liberal. If they hadn’t removed a clearly racist policy why would they introduce an inclusive one. Homosexuality would probably still be illegal. If you examples of this look to the middle east. What country on earth acknowledges homosexuals but not people from different backgrounds.

@ John
Fair point interesting. I was thinking more about the point that views on LGBT matters, Abortion, Euthanasia are driven more by someone’s religious/cultural views than educational attainment/income. It is why seats like Bennelong, Parramatta, Reid, Mitchell, Menzies, Banks, Berowra all either voted No or had below average support for SSM while seats i mentioned that are more white working class had much higher support. In Australia, the level of religiosity is much higher among ethnic communities compared to Anglo Australians. I mentioned in the Kingston thread two days ago that Kingston was the least religious seat in the country while Werriwa is the most religious both are outer suburban but the difference is mainly due to ethnic differences. Also seats like Longman even have a higher % of people without a religion compared to Teal seats like Goldstein, Wentworth .

@Nimalan, interestingly I feel Steve Christou and Peter Dutton talking on nationalistic culture war issues on Indigenous like banning Welcome to Country and flags may resonate better in Anglo heavy No Vote heavy areas rather than a seat like Blaxland where CALD is probably more meh about these topic.

@ Marh
I agree which is why it surprises me that Steve Christou is playing this issue when most people in areas like CALD parts Western Sydney probably dont give a damn about Welcome to Country, flags etc while a culture war about Drag Story time for Children, Pride Flags in Schools, Safe Schools probably resonate due high levels of religiosity a nationalistic culture war suits better in the Hunter seats, Lindsay, Moreton Bay region while LGBT issues probably are not of interest there. I think that is Why Dutton said he does not really care about the LGBT census question and did not really talk about Trans issues which i actually thought he may back when he became Liberal leader.

Another politician that is playing issues that largely non-issue for the area or even the quite opposite is Port Hedland Councilor Adrian McRae who focuses on his pro-Russia/Putin view and even went to Russia to interview of state TV. I overwhelm majority of Australians including the outback would oppose Putin’s Invasion of Ukraine and hence his politics would backfire. It might somewhat work in certain CALD Heavy areas but then again I don’t think even CALD Voters would vote just because of his “Anti-west Foreign Policy” as McRae is a far-right candidate.

yeah i agree Marh it seems weird than an Outback seat you will get an Anti-Western Foreign policy candidate. in Blaxland an Anti-Western Foreign policy may resonate but like you said McRae is far right and foreign policy is just one issue people vote on.