Kennett loses by-election
By Maurice Sibelle
MELBOURNE — The Kennett Liberal government lost its second safest seat on February 1 in a by-election for the Gippsland West seat of Wonthaggi. In its first major electoral defeat, the Liberals' primary vote dropped by a massive 16%.
Susan Davies, who ran as an independent, defeated former minister for transport Alan Brown. Davies was an ALP candidate in the March 1996 state election but stood as an independent after Labor decided not to run. Davies was one of five independents.
The defeat was an enormous setback for the government. Kennett and Liberal ministers campaigned heavily in the electorate. While local issues played some part in the defeat, the vote reflected wider disenchantment with the government in rural areas. Rural unemployment is higher than the state average.
Davies ran a strong campaign opposing a seal-viewing development on the Nobbies at the southern tip of Phillip Island. Polling on Phillip Island showed larger than average swings away from the government.
The election was also affected by a large campaign against the development of a four-star lodge in the Wilson's Promontory National Park. During the course of the campaign, Kennett abandoned this development and scaled down the proposal for the Nobbies.
Davies' vote picked up in the town of Korumburra, amidst uncertainty over the future of its hospital. While the government claimed that hospital services would not be reduced, the vote reflects a widespread concern over cuts to state services.
Davies' primary vote did not significantly increase from when she ran for the ALP. She was helped by the preferences of the pro-gun Australian Reform Party, which picked up 10% of the vote, and the Shooters' Party, which got 5%.
Federal industrial relations minister Peter Reith was worried by the result. His federal seat takes in Wonthaggi. He told the Age that the Liberals had to heed voter concerns. Apparently unmoved, Kennett commented, "This government ain't for changing".