Victoria’s Labor premier, Steve Bracks, claimed victory in the state election on the evening of polling day, November 25. Bracks said that the result was a message to the federal government “To stop dictating about nuclear reactors, and industrial relations, and start listening to families right around this country”. With 75% of the vote counted, the ALP had won almost 44% of the vote, a swing against it of around 4.3%. The Greens won 9.7% of the vote; right-wing religious party Family First won 4.3%.Victoria's Labor premier, Steve Bracks, claimed victory in the state election on the evening of polling day, November 25. Bracks said that the result was a message to the federal government "To stop dictating about nuclear reactors, and industrial relations, and start listening to families right around this country". With 75% of the vote counted, the ALP had won almost 44% of the vote, a swing against it of around 4.3%. The Greens won 9.7% of the vote; right-wing religious party Family First won 4.3%.
Socialist Alliance lower-house candidates Vannessa Hearman and Margarita Windisch won 1.97% in Brunswick and 1.51% in Footscray respectively. Two Socialist Alliance members who ran in the upper house Western Victoria region received a total of some 900 votes (about 0.3%).
Steve Jolly, a Yarra councillor and member of the Socialist Party, won over 6% in Richmond — some 1550 votes. Jolly's vote represented an increase of 4.1% from last election; the Greens' Richmond vote dropped 5.6% to 23%. In Derrimut, independent socialist candidate Jorge Jorquera received almost 1% of the vote.
Windisch said she was proud of the alliance's election campaign. "We used our campaign to put forward a principled socialist voice — we weren't afraid to take up 'hot potato' issues that others wouldn't touch, like the question of civil liberties and the treatment of the 'Melbourne 13'."
She described Jolly's vote as an "excellent vote for an openly socialist candidate in a state election" and, along with the votes of other socialists and the strong Green vote, a "good result for the left". She added that "Socialist Alliance wants to thank all its members and many supporters for helping out with our campaign".
Windisch told GLW: "What next for the alliance? The same as always: we'll be back on the street defending the rights of our class. We used our election campaign to help build the grassroots struggles we've been involved in — like helping to staff workers' picket lines, Palestine solidarity and building the protests against the G20."
Windisch concluded by telling GLW that the next major mobilisation for alliance members would be at the anti-Work Choices protests on November 30.