While Coalition sources are still making semi-confident noises in their briefings to the press gallery, Scott Morrison seems to have spent most of past week-and-a-bit sandbagging second-tier seats rather than carving out a pathway to victory, while Bill Shorten has remained on the offensive. In the first three weeks of the campaign, Morrison spent roughly as much time in Labor as in Coalition-held electorates, but going back to last weekend, the only prime ministerial visit that seemed in any way targeted at a Labor-held seat was in the New South Wales Central Coast seat of Dobell last Sunday – and that might equally have been pitched at its marginal Liberal-held neighbour, Robertson.
Morrison’s efforts yesterday were devoted to the Melbourne seat of Deakin, which the Liberals believed they had nailed down in more optimistic times earlier in the campaign. Similarly, Friday brought him to Capricornia, one of a number of regional Queensland seats the Coalition was supposedly feeling relaxed about due to the Adani issue. The visit was to Rockhampton, but the announcement of a new CQUniversity mines and manufacturing school equally applied to Gladstone, located in the similarly placed neighbouring seat of Flynn.
Morrison has also spent a lot of time on seats where the Liberals are under pressure from independents. Tuesday was spent straddling the Murray, where Cathy McGowan’s support group hopes to bequeath Indi to Helen Haines on the Victorian side, and Albury mayor Kevin Mack is taking on Liberal member Sussan Ley in the New South Wales seat of Farrer. On Thursday he went to Cowper, which it is feared the Nationals will lose to Rob Oakeshott.
Most remarkably, Morrison also spent the entirety of a trip to Melbourne last Friday in Kooyong, where he made pronouncements on themes not normally considered staples of the Liberal campaign, namely recycling and protection of threatened species (insert Josh Frydenberg joke). The danger there is that the seat will lose the blue-ribbon seat to ex-Liberal independent Oliver Yates. Still more striking is the fact that Bill Shorten felt the seat worth a visit yesterday, if only to be photographed with puppies at Guide Dogs Victoria.
You can find my accounting of the leaders’ movements in spreadsheet form here.
In other news, the last Sunday newspapers of the campaign are typically the first to bring editorial endorsements, although both the Fairfax titles have squibbed it today, as has Perth’s Sunday Times. The four News Corp papers that have taken a stand have all gone as you would expect. The online headline in the Sunday Telegraph says it is “time to end the worst period of political instability and cynicism since federation” – which you should do, naturally, by returning the government. Granted that this makes more sense if you read the whole thing, though very few will of course. In Victoria, the Coalition gets the endorsement of the Sunday Herald Sun, as it did before the state election in November, for all the good it did them. The Brisbane Sunday Mail’s effort is headlined “Australians can’t afford a reckless pursuit of utopia”; the Adelaide Sunday Mail says it’s “time for a steady hand”, i.e. not Bill Shorten’s.
Also today: the latest episode of Seat du jour, tackling the Perth seat of Hasluck.
Justin Madden hand balled a football across the Upper House to another ex-AFL player on the Liberal side, so he wasn’t the only ex footballer in the Parliament.
Genuinely think 2004 broke Latham. On a comprehensive way.
Peter Watson!!
Greg ‘Dishhead” Dowling is running for PHoN in Herbert
Oakeshott Country @ #1032 Sunday, May 12th, 2019 – 8:37 pm
OC
It was a miserable night but I agree. I was optimistic but of course Latham would have been an arrogant disaster.
It was actually the first election for me where so many just walked past the HTV lineup and went straight into the Hall (Taree High). It was miserable. It was no surprise that Howard would be back.
I’m a bit more optimistic for Shorten today after the Morrison Party Launch.
guytaur @ #1031 Sunday, May 12th, 2019 – 8:36 pm
Having now read his tweet it looks like he is guessing just as much as we are.
And there was that ageing Liberal former marathon runner who held a western Sydney seat back in the Howard years. Farmer or something?
Former Crows player Nigel Smart ran for the Liberals at the 2006 South Australia election in the seat of Norwood.
Chris “Bomber” Bombolas was the ALP Member for Chatsworth for one term in Queensland. Chris was the Channel 9 Sports Reporter for many years and got many a scoop on the Rugby League.
Wally Lewis is a well known ALP man and his wife I think is still a Branch Member.
And yes Jonathan Thurston gave Shorten a boost in Townsville at the beginning of the campaign. Thurston also helped “kick start” the 2006 ALP State campaign in the State seat of Thuringowa.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/alex-turnbull-defends-deleted-tweet-about-the-murdoch-family-20190512-p51mhr.html
Which Murdoch was young Alex sledging?
Also – I had no idea that Janet has shacked up with Kroger. When did this monstrosity happen?
Confessions, Pat Farmer.
There is also John Alexander the former tennis player.
Chris Kenny says Newspoll result will be released shortly. Based on last week it is actually announced by Paul Murray whose show comes after Kenny’s.
Tried but failed Carl Rackemann and John Connolly who was virtually the only LNP candidate not to win in Qld in 2012
Confessions
Pat Farmer
And there was Sir Hubert Opperman, champion cyclist.
Charlie Perkins
Damian Drum (National MP for Murray) was coach of Fremantle for a few years.
Alex Turnbull defends deleted tweet about the Murdoch family..references pending Murdoch dirt article on Bill.
Mr Turnbull’s message came in reply to another suggesting The Daily Telegraph was set to publish a dirt file on Opposition Leader Bill Shorten this week.
The tweet did not name an individual member of the Murdoch family but implied hypocrisy regarding one’s personal life.
Of course Harold Holt was a swimmer.
Brett Lee has trashed his otherwise esteemed career by endorsing Tony Abbott in Warringah
And a former speaker of the SA lower house, Gil Langley, Test wicket keeper. I remember as a child going to his house tagging along with my dad, his SA team mate, the morning after his first election win.
Damien Drum was a footy player in the VFL.
Paralympic swimmer Matt Cowdrey is now a lib state mp in South Australia
BK:
Yes Pat Farmer.
Gary Ablett Snr. should have gone into politics.
Representing arseholes who offer young women heroin under the pretense that it’s cocaine. Then sit back and watch as a young life is taken.
And escape justice.
A fabulous Christian, Gary Ablett.
A heroin junkie.
God.
AFL personified.
Test Cricketer Tom Veivers was the Federal ALP MP for Brisbane. His brother Tom a Rugby League Test rep was the National Party state MP for Southport.
I think Wayne has just been released!
Tom Uren.
League. Boxing.
Katherine Murphy’s take on today’s “lanch”: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/may/12/liberal-campaign-launch-a-slow-leak-of-air-from-a-balloon-a-hiss-presaging-deflation
I am ashamed to admit i forgot my childhood hero Darrel Baldock who was a labor minister (minister for roads I believe) in Tasmania in 1975-1982. Left to coach St Kilda, before a stroke pretty much ruined him.
Does William have a policy against repeatedly spamming the same post or does that fall under the ‘too stupid’ rule?
fozzie logic
Thanks for posting it. I expect we’ll see something similar here again.
ajm
Adelaide, unlike parts of Brissie, has the benefit of being flat so was ideal for trolley buses. They disappeared in the late 1950s or early 60s.
In 1966 ‘Captain Blood’ Jack Dyer ran for the ALP in Prahran and lost to the Liberal candidate – Australian cricketer Sam Loxton
When worked for a Federal MP, Rick Charlsworth MP Perth had his office next to us at Parliament House.
51-49 tighten
Andrew Earlwood
Kroger and JA were an item through the RGR years.
Chris Kenny says Newspoll says coalition still trailing in 2PP but picking up seats.
Coalition primary up
Lee’s career anything but esteemed imho. Was terrific for 18 months at the beginning and about the same at the end. In between bowled two lengths and was more often than not pummelled.
Easily the worst bowler in history to take 300 test wickets.
LNP Primary has increased according to CK #newspoll
If they’re trailing in 2pp they aren’t picking up seats ffs. Must be taking them from the minors
NSW Premier and federal finance minister, John Fahey was a first grade Rugby League player.
Tony Abbott played about 50 first grade Union games for University & about 200 second grade games.
Matt Thistlewaite was champion junior surf lifesaver. In between winning a senate seat in the 2010 and taking his place in July 2011 he trained for and participated in the Coolangatta Gold, winning his age group. He also ran a sub 3hr marathon two years ago. Andrew Leigh ran a sub 2:40 the same day.
Former Senator Mark Arbib is a very fast runner and now the head of Athletics Australia.
Former Premier John Bannon was a sub 2:30 marathoner.
Joshie Frydenberg was a teenage tennis protege.
Tony Abbott got an Oxford Blue for boxing..
Re Michael Cleary Commentator on World Championship Wrestling.
I can never forget the great Hawaiian champ King Curtis when he was questioned by Cleary.
(Slowly spoken) “Mi – cooollll, …… Mi-coollllllllllll.” Then the King would break out in a shouting hysterical rant for a minute or so and then it was back to ….. Mi – cooollll, …… Mi-coollllllllllll.
Back in the day when the wrestling was fair dinkum.
I found Cleary on WCW
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqBiVzPCEFo
Here is apost match interview with King (not with Cleary though)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQW-Dq_BA5Q
Based on posts by sprocket_ and michael, I’ll close the guess list and wait to see what the numbers are…
A_E – you are lowering the bar. You will have Clive Palmer leaping over it in no time.
If 51-49 is the best Newspoll can manage a week out I am feeling less pessimistic.
A-E
Tony Abbott famously thumped Joe Hockey in a scrum at Sydney Uni 3rd grade – they were on the same team
“And there was Sir Hubert Opperman, champion cyclist.”
Gough always maintained that Oppey was a cheat. …
Margaret was an empire games breaststroker. Gough was a rowing blue at Sydney uni.
AFL is the sport of choice for toothless racists and Neanderthal knuckle draggers who love sticking bags of meth up their rectal passages and punching on at the MCG while shouting ‘monkey’.
A national disgrace.