With bookmakers offering shorter odds for the One Nation and Independent candidates in the Farrer by-election, questions remain for voters following campaign scrutiny and mixed messaging ahead of Saturday’s polling. The electorate formally represented for 25 years by Susan Ley for the Liberals and covering 125,563 sq km, is the second largest in the state after Parkes, stretching from Albury and the Greater Hume shire, north and west through the Riverina to Wentworth shire and the South Australian border. Five candidates - representing Liberal, National, One Nation and Family First parties, and one Independent supported by Climate 200 - have canvassed electors on their policies and promises. Stamina of candidates to service such a large electorate and local regional issues will no doubt be a factor for voters. As one of Australia’s richest agricultural regions, water has been a key issue for irrigators and towns, and more recently fuel and fertiliser costs; other key issues included health services, housing affordability, and local government funding. The Liberal candidate Raissa Butkowski has felt the rising popularity of One Nation and will struggle to replicate Susan Ley’s parliamentary record following her party’s instability which now seems to have stabilised under Angus Taylor’s leadership. The Nationals’ new leader Matt Cannavan put in a strong campaign in support of his candidate, former army officer Brad Robertson. Canavan camped in the electorate bringing his forthright style to voters, including rejecting the government’s proposed gun buybacks legislation, which differed from his candidates’ views on the issue. One Nation candidate David Farley comes to the contest as a former agribusiness leader and a strong advocate against water buy backs. This was at odds to the revelations that earlier he considered being a candidate for the Labor Party whose policies actioned the water buy backs. Farley also argued for the need for ‘skilled workers’ in the regions, called for ‘good migration’ and an immigration review, which was against One Nation’s policy of culling migration by 570,000. Again on water policies shrinking irrigation allocations and increasing prices, Independent candidate Michelle Millthorpe called for a Royal Commission into the Murray Darling Plan but struggled to distance herself from Climate 200 financial support and their policies linked to international climate agreements that have influenced the basin plan current policies. While Independent members representing regions have increased in popularity, questions remain regarding their results ‘as a collective’ on issues affecting regional communities. Some analysts maintain voter support for Independents and away from the major parties has not translated into an effective political force to deliver for their communities and struggling small to medium businesses. Farrer is a vital national electorate with close to 127,000 electors; its two main cities of Albury with a population close to 60,000, and Griffith 27,500, are complemented by local towns and service communities - some threatened with an uncertain local government variability. Advocating for development of the region and representing its people requires the successful candidate to have capacity to focus on many issues, a candidate with broad experience, and a respected member of an experienced party that can deliver results.
